You Had Me At Hogwarts
by ChangedForGood113
Summary: Kurt and Blaine's love is as magical as it is spellbinding to watch. An enchanted school which has inspired and captured so many hearts seems the perfect setting. I couldn't NOT write this fan fiction, and I hope that you all enjoy it. I love our fandom.
1. Chapter 1: Merely Spellbound

_**DISCALIMER:  
>I, of course, do not own Glee or Harry Potter (unfortunately!). I am merely a fan who wished to merge the two of them. Now the time lines, settings and plot are a little mashed up for both, so you will have to take some things with a pinch of salt. I have taken parts from both the show and the books, but they have been altered to fit the story I wished to share. I am hoping that you all will forgive me, and shall enjoy my rendition if you are a fan of both or either of them (and let's be honest, you should be, because they're both amazing). I also know that everyone sort of sees the characters differently, and I am sorry if mine do not completely comply with your own interpretation, but I have tried to hold as firmly onto how I see them portrayed on screen and paper. Obviously, through this story the characters have to face situations that they have not in their already set storylines on Glee and so I had to just judge upon what they might do from the evidence I had. I know that I do not always agree with how characters react in other fan-fictions, so I don't expect this will be any different, but I have tried to do the best I could. If nothing else I hope that you simply enjoy reading this as much as I have enjoyed writing it and don't hesitate to contribute your opinions, whatever they may be. Try to make criticism at least constructive however, I do have feelings too! Also, yes, they're all in Gryffindor at the moment but other people will end up featuring later who come from different houses.<strong>_

Chapter One: Merely Spellbound

Kurt peered around the corner, cautiously. He swept his eyes across the few faces that lined the corridor and knew that the coast was clear. The tight breath he had been holding in his chest blew out of his cheeks as he shut his eyes for a moment and proceeded along the tall-walled halls.

He kept his eyes darting around the area as a precaution nonetheless, and kept his pace quick.

To his left he saw three first years desperately trying to trap a run-away chocolate frog. He rolled his eyes disparagingly at their foolish attempts and hugged his satchel strap to his chest, feeling a little better as he moved forward. He passed a tight-lipped McGonagall, hands on her hips, who was currently scolding a small blond-haired boy who kept his eyes concentrated on his feet. Kurt couldn't distinguish her words as she spoke them in a bitter whisper, all he knew was that he was glad he was not on the receiving end at that moment. He felt sorry for the kid.

The doors at the end of the corridor were fast approaching and he felt the relief flood through him that he had managed it this far this morning without having been confronted by his worst fear.  
>He pushed the door open and quickly shut himself inside.<p>

"Nice of you to join us," A deep slow voice with a slight edge of venom met him.

Kurt turned around to see the tall Potion's Master standing before him, with his arms folded, his greasy hair hanging by his pale face. A sneer fixed permanently on his face beneath his hooked nose. Kurt bit his lip.

"Sorry, Sir. It won't happen again."

"You are correct. It won't. 10 points from Gryffindor."

"But-"

"Argue and I will make it 20." He said in his low drone.

Kurt stared up at him, biting back the newly formed comeback that was balancing in his head and instead side-stepped Snape, making his way over to the table where his friends sat.

Mercedes gave him a confused look; she was also unknowing as to why he had been so late to class, but she pulled out a chair beside her for him to sit nonetheless.

He breathed out a word of thanks, earning him a quick whack over the back of his head with a book from the Potion's master before the lesson proceeded, Kurt gingerly massaging his scalp.

"Where were you before Potions?" Mercedes demanded as soon as they exited the classroom. Kurt sighed, hoping he would have gotten more breathing space, yet it seemed apparent that was not about to happen.

"I left my books back in my dormitory, I had to go back and get them." He said casually.

"You know you really shouldn't be so forgetful, Kurt, sloppiness will get you nowhere." Rachel chimed in and he decided that he would not dignify her statement with a reply.

"Are you okay, man, you seem tense…" Finn said, frowning at his step brother.

"I'm fine, just irritated about Snape taking those points away from Gryffindor, that's all." He said quickly, turning the corner and hoping to get rid of them and their nagging questions. He could really use a lie down as they were fast approaching the common room.

He couldn't shake them however, it seemed.

"That was uncalled for, even for him, but are you sure you're okay?" Mercedes chimed again.

"I'm fine! Honestly, will you guys just get off my back? I was late for one class, no need to call in the Spanish Inquisition! ...Butterbeer," He spoke the last part to the Fat Lady who swung open and they all walked through the opening.

He turned to the rest of them.

"Sorry, I'm just tired, and I have a lot of work to do. I'll see you a bit later, okay?" With that he turned to head up the stairway and back to his room, he closed his eyes as he walked. He wished that he could talk to them about it, but he couldn't quite put it all into words, besides he did not want to see how they would react. The questions he'd had already today were bad enough and he knew it was something he would have to deal with on his own. Like everything else.

Kurt was heading to the Valentine's Lunch in the Great Hall the next day. He was not a huge fan of this holiday; it only reminded him of how lonely he felt inside, but he supposed he would just have to put up with the lurid pink flowers and unsightly décor for the moment until he could wake up tomorrow and it would all be over.  
>Distracted by his depressing thoughts he unthinkingly turned a corner and ran right into a tall, blocky, dark-haired boy. He was a year older than Kurt, a Slytherin seal stitched into his robes.<p>

Kurt's legs began to tremble, causing him to take several shaky steps backwards as he stared up into the face that caused him such terror.

He quickly looked around him. The corridors were filled with people; surely he couldn't do anything here?

The boy just looked at him through black eyes and took one step towards him. Kurt shrank back slightly.

"You better watch yourself, Hummel. If you know what's good for you."

"And you better move yourself away from such shameful cliché's," Kurt said. He wasn't going to back down that easily.

"You'd better not answer back to me."

"And why's that?" Kurt asked, his voice going unspeakably high in spite of himself.

"Because I am capable of things you couldn't even imagine."

Kurt didn't doubt that in the slightest as he saw the boy's hulking frame. Fists and jaw clenched as he stared Kurt down into cinders.

"Oh yeah? You certainly seem to think a lot of yourself." He retorted, trying to stop his legs from shaking.

"In comparison to you, I should think so." The Slytherin snarled.

"And why is that Karofsky?" Kurt said, finding some new defiance he hadn't yet utilised in the face of the bully that stood over him. His eyes blazed as he refused to break eye contact.

"Because not only are you a slimy mud blood," He spat the word making Kurt's blood turn to ice, "but you're also a man-loving freak."

With the last words he put two hands against Kurt's chest and pushed him with undisputable force so that he crashed into the wall behind him.

Kurt's shocked eyes scanned the corridor as the wind rushed out of him. Everyone else had gone. He was abandoned. He slid down the wall, clutching his chest as he did so, gasping for breath.

Karofsky merely smiled at the corner of his mouth. "That was a warning."

He walked away, leaving Kurt in a crumpled heap on the floor. He sat there for several moments, not able to keep a hold of himself, clutching his chest and forcing his harsh breathing to steady. He only realised after a few minutes that he was late to the Great hall.

Kurt took a deep breath and stood up, brushing down his newly pressed Hogwarts robes which he had lined with a deep maroon and gold pattern along the hem and wore a light grey turtleneck beneath. By now most of the teachers had given up trying to contradict his uniform alterations; they were subtle and not completely against regulations.

He headed over to the great wooden doors and put one hand against the frame. He could already hear a chime of music behind the mahogany and the sound of muffled vocals coming from within. Curious, he pushed open the door.

…_But things were kind of heavy, you brought me to life_

_Now every February you'll be my Valentine…Valentine._

Kurt stood quietly by the back door; everyone else was seated and had not noticed his entrance. Well, almost everyone. The reason they had not acknowledged his presence was because he was not the only student standing. On the platform, next to where the teachers sat, were a group of boys dressed smartly despite their conflicting coloured houses. They were singing. In the centre of the group, the lead vocalist was out one step in front of the rest of his group. Kurt looked at him in amazement.

_Let's go all the way tonight, no regrets_

_Just love_

_We can dance, until we die_

_You and I, we'll be young forever_

At the moment Kurt could have sworn that his eyes met the vocalist's. A small smile crept over the boy's face. Kurt knew he must stand out, being the only other person in the hall who was standing, but at that moment he found it hard to be embarrassed. In fact, he felt rush of fear and horror he had just encountered in the hallway evaporate as he stood rooted to the spot. Merely spellbound.

_My heart stops, when you look at me_

_Just one touch, now baby I believe_

_This is real, so take a chance_

_And don't ever look back, don't ever look back_

The song continued on and Kurt could do nothing but stare in amazement. It was as though time had stood still and all he could see were those warm brown-golden eyes that kept flickering back to his face. He knew he had seen this guy before. He was the year above and Kurt had seen him around the Gryffindor common room but… Not like this. Now he was truly seeing him.

_You make me feel like I'm living a Teenage Dream_

_The way you turn me on, I can't sleep_

_Let's runaway and don't ever look back,_

_Don't ever look back_

_My Heart stops when you look at me,_

_Just one touch, now baby I believe_

_This is real so take a chance and don't ever look back_

_Don't ever look back_

A lot of the surrounding girls were putting their heads together excitedly, yet he took little notice. There also seemed to be great confusion amidst the halls. Nothing like this had happened before in Hogwarts. They were here to perform magic, not musical routines, and yet here these guys were. It was mesmerising.

_I'ma get your heart racing in my skin tight jeans_

_Be your Teenage Dream Tonight_

_Let you put your hands on me in my skin tight jeans_

_Be your Teenage Dream Tonight._

The song ended and only one thing reverberated inside Kurt's head: I need to know his name.

Perhaps it wasn't such a heinous holiday after all…

"That was…unexpected." Finn said as they exited the hall.

"It was amazing," Mercedes corrected him with a slight annoyance. "If I knew that we could do that here I wouldn't just be singing back at home at church. Not that I don't love doing that, but this is a whole other level."

"Absolutely, I can't believe I have been so blinded before now. Of course, I have performed many impromptu performances around our common room, to which I have had a tidal wave of support-"

"I don't think those third-year girls telling you to shut up was support-" Finn tried to interject, being ignored instantly.

"But I never thought we could perform at Hogwarts in any sort of official format! I am positively furious with myself for not having done so before now! What was I doing with myself all this time? I seriously need to rethink my life and priorities. I am ashamed - and I really do hope none of them used vocalising spells to boost their performance." Rachel said all this at an insanely fast pace.

"Oh those always make you sound like you've stepped right off a radio soundtrack; you can tell in an instant and they were all natural." Mercedes said.

"Well, I for one am not going to stand by and allow them to take away my precious and deserved spotlight."

"I think it was only because those guys were asked to sing up there, Rachel. They have a show choir thing outside of Hogwarts where they live. I think Dumbledore just thought it would be nice to have a performance on Valentine's Day for the occasion." Finn said, shrugging.

"How do you know that they perform outside Hogwarts?" Rachel demanded.  
>"That lead singer guy is on the Quidditch team with me, remember? He's a Chaser."<p>

"What?" Kurt said, looking up. He felt as though he had been in a daze for the last 20 minutes. If he was on the Quidditch team he may as well be written off as straight. Damn.

"What is with you? You haven't said a thing since you sat down with us in the hall." Mercedes said quizzically.

"And you were late again." Rachel added.

"Yeah, sure I'll think about it. Listen, I have to go and hand in my Charms essay. See you in Astronomy," Kurt said, having not taken in a single word they had said.

The others were left dumbfounded in the corridor as he turned down another path.

"…He's been acting really weird lately." Finn said.

"Extremely," Supplied Mercedes.

"He doesn't seem angry anymore, though." Finn added, trying to find a positive element.

"No, but he is clearly distracted…" Rachel murmured. "He didn't even express how he would have liked to have sang up there. And Kurt loves to sing more than anyone - except me of course. I'm sure you would like it too, Finn, if you gave it a try."

"I don't know; I've never really sang in front of anyone before…" Finn said looking a little abashed.

"Don't be ridiculous, it's easy. I'm sure you have a perfectly adequate voice. You don't have to be brilliant, a lot of those guys simply harmonised in the background. Don't worry if you can't measure up to the high standards that I set, there are few who can and most have already made it to the big time where I am soon to follow. I could help you with vocal training, of course, if you felt like that would be something you would be interested in." Rachel said in a torrent of quickly-paced words so that Finn had to take a moment to register and process all that she said. It didn't really sound like an offer. More a demand.

Mercedes rolled her eyes at the puppy-dog expression etched into Rachel's features. The girl was about as subtle as a breakdancing Hippogriff.

"Maybe I should just stick to Quidditch…" Finn said uneasily.

Rachel looked disappointed.  
>"Let's get to class," Mercedes said in monotone, grabbing Rachel by the hand and leading her towards the Astronomy Tower. She was still worried about Kurt; he had not been himself lately. She felt like she had seen a small spark in his eyes as he had walked away from them just then. Only for a second. Yet he was still acting oddly and Mercedes decided she would have to get to the bottom of things. She was almost positive that Flitwick hadn't even set a Charms essay recently.<p>

Kurt ducked into an empty classroom as soon as the others were out of sight. He closed the door behind him and slowly allowed himself to slide down, crouched on the floor. He waited a long time for his heart to stop pounding in his ear- drums.

This was insane; he didn't even know the guy. Not really, anyway - a few glances in corridors hardly counted. How he wished now that he had paid more attention.

Sure, he was not blind; he always known he was attractive, many girls seemed to make it clear that they shared a similar feelings also. As far as he could remember he had never seen him with a girlfriend, however. He couldn't be sure, though, and since he didn't know or see him all that much it was hardly solid evidence. He wished that he had not been so preoccupied by Finn over the last few years to have not noticed anyone else. That had all been settled last year, but now it seemed as though he has wasted 5 precious years at Hogwarts since he had not known this guy.

Okay, sure, he had only officially even come out last year - not that anyone was entirely surprised - so before that he hadn't exactly gone after anyone, still trying to find himself and a way to receive acceptance from everyone else, and then when he decided to it turned out to be one of his closest friends who then ended up being his new brother.

It was confusing to look back on, but they had put that all behind themselves now, and Kurt had to agree that he felt their relationship was far better this way. He had gotten to know Finn as a family member and it was good to have him for support.

Well, mostly - he still hated the fuss being made over him as it had been recently.

It was only then that Karofsky finally flitted to the surface of his mind again. He groaned internally. This was just another thing to now add to his distractions, and he still had OWLs to pass.

Kurt buried his head in his hands; the lyrics of the song he had just witnessed were now cut out by the ugly words: "Mud blood…man-loving freak".

After all that he had been through with Burt recently, with his heart problems and acceptance of Kurt's sexuality and the loss of his mother some time ago, to hear his family insulted that way… it made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end as he quaked with silent rage.

He could have punched him. Or at least, he felt as though he could have, realistically he had never even attempted to punch anyone and least of all a guy of his magnitude, who probably wouldn't even feel one of Kurt's hardest pounds. The whole business was futile and he knew it. He felt angry tears sting his eyes and wiped them away furiously.

Why did he always have to cry? Guys like Karofsky picked on the weak and Kurt thought bitterly that it was a no-brainer why he had chosen to victimise him.

Kurt felt so conflicted that he did not know what to do with himself. He did not know whether to be upset and angry or thrilled and excited about what he had just experienced in the great hall. He didn't know whether to face Karofsky or run and hide. Likewise with the lead vocalist, all though for entirely different reasons.

One thing he did know, however, was that he was late to class. Again. He did not need to give the others any more reason to badger him, so he wiped his tears away and stood up, painting a calm expression on his face. The show must go on.

Songs: Teenage Dream – Katy Perry (but as if you didn't know that already!)


	2. Chapter 2: Being Alone

Chapter Two: Being Alone.

Songs: You've Got A Friend – James Taylor (I have decided to put the songs at the beginning of these now, so that you may find them on Youtube or something beforehand and listen to them if you so please. I always do so when writing, and that is what inspires me to create the story detail around them. You don't HAVE to listen, but I thought I'd give you the options rather than having to scroll down and ruin the end of the chapter! I hate that.)

"Kurt," Mercedes hissed to his right. He pretended not to hear her as he clipped the leaves of his Flitterbloom. "Kurt!"

Another week had gone by and she had decided that she could not stand to hold her tongue any longer.

He sighed inwardly and turned to her, eyebrow arched; "Yes?"

"Look, I know you don't want to talk about whatever is going on with you but-"

Here we go, Kurt thought.

"-We're all just really worried about you; we hate to see you so…distant and… not yourself."

"Mercedes, I am always myself, I am right here being me, in case you had failed to notice. The glint of my lapel-pins should be a huge give away."

"Don't get sarky with me, Kurt, you know what I mean. You know that I am just looking our for you." She said softly as Professor Sprout passed by their table.

"I know," Kurt said, looking sadly back down at the plant. "But you needn't worry. I am fine."

"I know that you keep telling me that you're fine, Kurt, and telling yourself you are for that matter, and I know that you may not want to tell me all the gory details, but you could at least try to give me some degree of honesty. Anyone could tell that you are far from fine. I would have thought you could tell your best friend about it." Mercedes said curtly.

"Oh because snapping at me is really going to help!" Kurt piped up, keeping his composure, but fixing Mercedes with a steely stare to show that he was not about to put up with her sass.

"I'm trying to do anything to get you to talk to me!"

"For the last time: I. Don't. Want. To. Talk. About. It!" He said angrily, throwing his hands up in the air in agitation.

"Quiet, you two!" Professor Sprout scolded. The pair of them hadn't realised how loudly they had started to talk, and the rest of the class hurriedly turned their heads away when they saw that they had been caught watching them throughout the conversation.

Kurt pursed his lips and carried on clipping furiously.

"Well, at least you have admitted that it is something." Mercedes continued in murmur.

Kurt didn't say anything in reply.

"It's not something bad, is it Kurt?"

"Oh for the love of-" Kurt couldn't even finish the sentence, he slammed his gardening sheers down on the table, ripping off his gloves which he detested anyway and thwacked them alongside the sharp tools. Then he crossed over to the Greenhouse door and out before anyone else could react to his outburst.

Mercedes blinked and looked up to be met by concerned glances from Rachel and Finn who stood opposite.

"Maybe confronting him directly isn't working…" Finn suggested.

Mercedes scoffed. "You think?"

Rachel didn't say anything (an unusual occurrence at the best of times) and merely kept her head down, clipping her own Flitterbloom's leaves, thinking about the best course of action.

Kurt was sat outside on a wall overlooking the Hogwarts grounds when Rachel found him. It was fast approaching sunset and the cold air bit into her skin as the reddening sky caused their shadows to stretch across the glowing landscape. In the distance Hagrid's hut lit up, although it didn't seem as though Kurt had any inclination to go and talk to him, either.

Kurt's legs were crossed tightly and his shoulders were tense as he stared out at the grounds, blue eyes fixated on a spot far beyond what was actually visible.

She came and settled herself next to his rigid form and put a hand over his own, which lay on the wall beside him, gripping the stone beneath his fingertips. He jumped at the unexpected contact but did not retract his hand.

Rachel took this as a good sign, and rested her head against his shoulder.

He exhaled deeply. "I'm…really not in the mood for 20 questions right now." He said breathlessly, teeth chattering slightly from the cold.

"I'm not going to ask you any."

He looked down at her then in disbelief.

She chuckled lightly. "We can just sit."

And so they sat for a long while as the sun slowly descended down past the trees of the forbidden forest. Kurt relaxed a little and put an arm around Rachel when she began to shiver and she hugged him tightly.

After what seemed like an age he finally said the first words. She knew he would, and had wanted him to be okay to talk to her first.

"Is Mercedes upset with me?"

"No, just a little confused I think," She answered calmly.

"Okay."

He hesitated.

"Thank you."

"No problem," She said, smiling. "You know she meant well, right?"  
>He sighed. "I know."<p>

"I get that you don't want to talk about it, and you don't have to, but you may want to explain it a bit to Mercedes; she's not used to being locked out by you. I think she's at a bit of a loss of what to do."

"And you?"

Rachel turned her head up to look at him and sat back so that his arms fell back to his side.

She frowned slightly and looked to the ground. "I think I can understand… I mean, I don't know exactly what it is you're going through, but sometimes…sometimes you need to figure things out for yourself."

"For a really annoying person, you can be stupidly sensible sometimes…I'm not sure if that makes you more annoying." Kurt added as an afterthought, nudging her playfully.

She smiled. "We all have to be out for ourselves at the end of the day, and if being alone in this is what you think will help, then I trust your judgement."

Being alone… It was not something that he wanted, merely something that seemed to be forced upon him.

Rachel watched his expression. "But when you feel like you need to talk to someone, you know you have people who care for you very much."

"Yes," Kurt said, unable to muster any more words as he felt tears creeping into his eyes.

She squeezed his shoulder.

She looked out at the now dark sky and sighed, turning back to her downhearted friend. "Kurt?"

"Yes?" He said, looking up at her after having been able to stop himself crying this time.

"I think that maybe you and I should sing a song together. It might help."

He looked at her curiously for a moment. "All right, what do you want to sing?"

"I think this song outlines my sentiment to you as a friend, and it also caters wonderfully to my voice, but that's neither here nor there as the same goes for most songs." Rachel said earning herself an unimpressed look from Kurt, she continued on hurriedly; "Anyway, I think you'll know it and can join in, and hopefully you will listen to the lyrics and know that I mean them, and that if you ever need me to be your shoulder to cry on, Kurt, I will be there."

_When you're down and troubled_

_And you need a helping hand_

_And nothing, whoa nothing is going right._

_Close your eyes and think of me_

_And soon I will be there_

_To brighten up even your darkest nights._

Kurt smiled slightly and joined in on the high note that she had left off from, adding a different twist to the classic song to meet their unique styles.

_You just call out my name,_

_And you know wherever I am_

_I'll come running, oh yeah baby_

_To see you again._

They both sang in unison, looking at one another, Kurt casually bumping Rachel on the shoulder and her beaming at him happily.

_Winter, spring, summer, or fall,_

_All you have to do is call_

_And I'll be there, yeah, yeah, yeah._

_You've got a friend._

_If the sky above you_

_Should turn dark and full of clouds_

_And that old north wind should begin to blow_

_Keep your head together and call my name out loud_

_And soon I will be knocking upon your door._

_You just call out my name and you know where ever I am_

_I'll come running to see you again._

_Winter, spring, summer or fall_

_All you got to do is call_

_And I'll be there, yeah, yeah, yeah._

_Hey, aint it good to know that you've got a friend?_

_People can be so cold._

_They'll hurt you and desert you._

_Well they'll take your soul if you let them._

_Oh yeah, but don't you let them._

As he sang that last verse Kurt felt a strange resemblance to his situation ring true in the words. Was he allowing these cold people to do the same to him? He paused for a moment before Rachel glanced at him and he came back to his senses and joined in on the chorus.

_You just call out my name and you know wherever I am_

_I'll come running to see you again._

_Oh babe, don't you know that,_

_Winter spring summer or fall,_

_Hey now, all you've got to do is call._

_Lord, I'll be there, yes I will._

_You've got a friend._

_You've got a friend._

_Aint it good to know you've got a friend._

_Aint it good to know you've got a friend._

_You've got a friend._

Kurt breathed out a long breath, causing a cloud that protruded from his lips due to the cold weather to swirl in the air between them and settle a little. He turned to the small girl beside him and smiled briefly. "Thank you, Rachel, but that being alone thing… I think I want that for a little longer… if you don't mind?"

"Of course… maybe we can sing together properly some time and have a real diva-off." Rachel said getting up, eyes glinting. "That is, if you're not afraid of the challenge."

"It's not a challenge; it's your inevitable defeat. But yes, maybe one day, Miss Rachel Berry."

Rachel smirked. "Don't stay out much longer, curfew is in 10 minutes and Filch will positively murder you, which has nothing on what me and the others may do if you end up getting hurt out here."

Her last words were worryingly close to the truth and she had no idea as she walked away and he scrambled to his feet.

_I am capable of things you couldn't even imagine._

Kurt swallowed, his hands shaking in his much preferred suede gloves. He dove them into the pockets of his robes and made his way to follow where Rachel had left, hanging back a little so as not to run into her again – he still felt like being alone.

Kurt was out in the halls past curfew, creeping around carefully so that he would not run into any teachers…or worse.

He had gone to the bathroom after Rachel had left him to clean himself up. He shouldn't have let himself get into such a state and stayed so long outside in the cold weather – it would be murder for his skin. He knew he would regret the decision in the morning.

The halls of Hogwarts were eerily quiet at night and he winced as he stood upon the moving staircase, which rumbled deeply as it transported him over to the landing where the Fat Lady hung.

He walked over to the portrait, and just as he was about to say the password, a hand shot out and grabbed him by the shoulder. It twisted his body around viciously.

Karofsky stood over him, leering in full malice.

Kurt looked petrified and hardly had time to realise what was happening before he had been thrown to the floor. He tried to scramble back towards the wall, which he clung to for support. He attempted to pull himself up using the banister, but an iron fist slammed down on his thin fingertips, so that he gave a yelp of pain and instantly clutched his injured hand, the bottoms of which were bleeding after having been grated against the stone.

Karofsky bent down so that he was inches away from Kurt's face. "You would do well to remember not to stay out after hours again, Hummel."  
>Kurt was in such shock that he could hardly process his threat, let alone think of a response to it. Before he could get his thoughts into gear he realised that he was alone again. Karofsky had left. What the hell had he been doing out in the halls anyway? …Waiting for him?<p>

Kurt shuddered and, clutching his hand gently he managed to get to his feet, head still spinning at what had just happened. It was like a scene to a nightmare, yet no matter how many pinches he gave himself, metaphorical or otherwise, he was not waking up.

He gasped the password and the Fat lady woke from her doze and angrily swung open after her slumber had been disrupted, not realising the state of the boy before her.

He felt so entirely disorientated when he stepped inside the common room, that at first he thought the guitar melody was simply a figment of his imagination, until it was sharply cut off.

"Hey are you okay? ...Are you_ bleeding_?"

The voice seemed very far away and Kurt swept his eyes across the darkened room until they eventually settled upon a figure that stood up just as he found them, a guitar hanging loosely by their side.

Kurt felt himself tremble and sway slightly. He felt as though he was going to be sick. He could feel the beads of sweat form on his forehead and the sharp breaths of panic escape his lips.

The figure moved quickly towards him and he felt a gentle tug behind the elbow on his uninjured arm. He allowed himself to be guided towards the nearest chair.

"Let me help you with that."

Kurt looked up and slowly managed to register the features of the boy who was now examining his crippled hand.

His dark curls hung more haphazardly than they had done when he had seen him the other day, and he was dressed instead in jeans and a simple red cardigan over a well-fitted white shirt. Yet he still had those warm brown-golden eyes and unmistakable features of the lead vocalist he had seen perform in the Great Hall…

"Well, I don't think it's broken." The boy assessed, tenderly feeling the joints of his fingers. Kurt did not even wince at the touch; instead he felt a whole different array of other things that he could not possibly put into words even if he were held at gunpoint.

The boy looked up, fixing him with those deep eyes and smiled. "I think you'll be okay. What happened?"

Kurt didn't answer. He wanted to say something amazingly witty, or to supply an answer that made him seem excessively cool in some way, but neither reply could be forged in his mind at present and instead he just felt a wave of embarrassment at what had just happened and looked down to the floor, avoiding those searching irises.

"All right…" The boy said, not wanting to push for answers. He seemed to have a knowing tone to his voice, as if he could read something from Kurt's unwillingness to answer the question.

He pointed his wand at the glass of water he had on the table and whispered a spell that made it turn to ice. He picked up the glass and shrugged off his cardigan as he wrapped it around the frozen liquid. This had the difficulty of revealing his well-fitted white shirt far too entirely, so that it was simply distracting. Kurt attempted to focus on the boy's face as an alternative, but this proved unhelpful as he noted his soft-looking smooth skin, the strong defined lines of his jaw, which moved slightly as he worked, pulling his face into slight grimaces. Kurt's eyes lingered for just a moment on the boy's lips, but this certainly did not benefit his current predicament, so he focused instead on the hands between them.

He put the ice under Kurt's hand and then said: "Tergeo" so that the blood evaporated, making the wounds look far less severe. He looked back up at Kurt and smiled, then his face froze and he cocked his head sideways.

His dark brows furrowed, but his face brightened as they did so. "Don't I know you?"

Kurt looked back up at him, blinking in surprise.

The boy studied his face for a moment and then his face relaxed into a wide and genuine smile in recognition. "You're the guy who came in late to the Valentine's performance, weren't you?"

Kurt swallowed and averted his gaze. "Yes, sorry about that I, err, got held up."

The boy laughed lightly. "Don't worry about it; I don't mind."

Kurt looked back at his friendly face as he watched him with a certain degree of fascination.

"Oh jeez, where are my manners?" The boy said suddenly. "I'm Blaine. I would shake your hand, but…" He gave Kurt a quick grin.

He attempted to return it. "My name is Kurt."

"Well it is nice to meet you Kurt," He said cheerfully. "Although it could have been over happier circumstances."

Kurt nodded solemnly.

"You seem a little…shaken, if you don't mind me saying so." Blaine said, giving him a curious look as he sat back on the floor against the table, letting go of Kurt's hand, much to the younger boy's dismay.

Kurt pressed his lips together and took a deep breath.

"Did someone else do that to you?" He said, asking the blunt question and gesturing towards Kurt's injury.

Kurt paused for a moment and then nodded once.

Blaine's eyes darkened. "Just now?"

"Yes, but he's gone now." Kurt said, his eyes darting over to the back of the Fat Lady's portrait.

"I'm going to guess that this is not the first time he has…confronted you." Blaine said, choosing his words carefully as he could sense Kurt's delicate state.

Kurt merely shook his head and in spite of himself. He felt the tears roll down his cheeks.

"How long?" Blaine asked softly, watching the boy he had just met very carefully.

Kurt couldn't bring himself to reply.

Blaine hesitated a moment before shuffling forwards and placing his hand on Kurt's arm, sending a hot thrill through him. His eyes seemed to encapsulate Kurt completely as he looked up through his eyelashes and said, "I promise that I won't tell anyone else; you can trust me."

And for some unknown reason Kurt did, unequivocally. "Several weeks or so, I… ugh I don't even know when it all started. He's been harassing me for ages. I've always received a bit of grief for being…different, but not like this, and not here at Hogwarts. It is as though he hates me…for what I am… and he doesn't even know me."

Kurt's uninjured hand gripped his knee tightly as he strained to speak through his tears and anguish.

Blaine nodded slowly, realising the struggle he has fought through to speak those words to him. "Do your friends know?"

"No."  
>"Don't you think you should tell them?"<p>

"They… I don't think they notice. He's passed me in the halls a few times when I'm with them and they just don't seem to see it… He threatens me mostly… The violence has only just become a recent occurrence. It sort of creeped up on me before I knew what was happening and then just escalated and I – God, I shouldn't even be telling you this. I haven't told anyone."

He put his undamaged fingers to his temples and closed his eyes, wishing that everything would just go away. Well, not everything… This guy seemed so…sympathetic? No it wasn't sympathy; it was empathy. He hung on Kurt's every word and responded with tentative responses as though he could tell every thought that crossed Kurt's mind. He hadn't been able to mention it to his friends, yet here he was spewing all of it to a complete stranger. Yet for some reason, he didn't feel like a stranger.

Blaine simply watched him as his mind raced and said finally; "It's okay, I… Sort of know exactly how you feel."

Kurt looked up at him curiously.

"I went to a summer school back home last year. My Dad he… Well, he likes to send me away there, let's leave it at that," Blaine said, piquing Kurt's interest. "Anyway, I found my time there… difficult. I mean, I was the only person there who was openly gay - people didn't take too well to it."

"You're-"

Blaine nodded.

A thousand thoughts whizzed across Kurt's mind and emotions fluttered across his stomach, but he pushed them all to the back of his consciousness as he focused on what Blaine had to say with heightened intrigue. "What happened?"

"Well there were a few guys who took an extreme dislike to me and pretty much made my life hell. Seems as though it is similar to what you're going through. They never left me alone: constantly cornering me and shoving me. It got to an extent where my Mother realised I wasn't myself and then she asked me what was going on and… Well, she pulled me out of there. She tried to get them to expel the boys, but there was no real evidence for what they had done so the case was dropped. It really pissed me off, but apparently intolerance isn't intolerable enough for the boards to take action. It was like, hey, if you're gay then your life is just going to be miserable, sorry," Blaine sighed bitterly. "Look, I don't know exactly what this guy has been doing, but if it has come to this…" He looked again at Kurt's hand. "I really think you ought to do something about it."

"What?" Kurt asked desperately, at a loss to answer that question.

"Confront him." Blaine said simply.

"What?" Kurt asked again with a slight splutter.

"I know it sounds impossible… and I can't exactly tell you that it is fool-proof, because I never got to face my demons… I ran away before I got the chance, and it is something I really regret. If you're anything like me, Kurt, you'll want answers to why he is doing this, and I am afraid that the only way you are going to get that is if you face him head on."

Kurt stared at Blaine for a moment, having to drink in everything: his words; his expression; his conviction. He felt too incredulous to be able to compose himself as he considered the whole situation and everything that had happened, and was happening to him tonight. He may have to consider pinching himself again.

Kurt licked his lips nervously and shook his head a little. "How on earth to I do that?"

Blaine smiled slightly and gestured up to the red and gold drapes hanging from the ceiling. "Courage. It's what we Gryffindors are supposedly made of, and now you have the chance to prove it."


	3. Chapter 3: Courage

Chapter Three: Courage.

Kurt sat and ate his breakfast silently the next morning, staring up at the Gryffindor drapes that hung in the Great Hall. He smiled to himself as he chewed on the piece of toast in his hand. Courage.

"Kurt, why do you look as though you've just seen a pair of Doc Martins for sale at half price?" Mercedes asked, looking sceptically at her friend.

"Please, Mercedes, do not taunt me with such cruel jokes." Kurt replied, looking down at her.

Her eyes narrowed and her eyebrow raised; "Are you feeling okay?"

"Fine, thank you," He said happily.

Mercedes glanced to Finn, who just shrugged, and then she looked at Rachel, who merely shook her head a little in warning and turned to Kurt; "So, when do you think we should take another trip to Hogsmeade?"

"Hmm?" Asked Kurt, still a little absent-minded.

"Kurt, pay attention to me." Rachel said a little sulkily.

"If only you were so easy to ignore," He said with a sarcastic edge, after swallowing his last bit of toast. None of them had seem him eat so much in one sitting in a long time.

Rachel smiled inwardly at the jibe – he was acting as he usually did.

Kurt airily answered the question: "I don't know, whenever you guys want to go is fine my me; I could do with a break from all this exam prep."

"I don't think I'll be going out for a while; I need to study." Finn said glumly.

"I hate OWLs," Said Mercedes, putting her head onto her arms in exasperation. Kurt patted her on the shoulder in comfort.

"We'll all do fine. In a month or so it will all be over and then we can just relax and enjoy the rest of the year here," Rachel said; she was usually good at exams, so they didn't entirely worry her as much as the others.

"You should have been a Ravenclaw, I swear…Where are you going?" Finn asked as Kurt stood up suddenly from the table.

Kurt had just seen Karofsky's shadow sweep out of the doors at the back of the room and had decided that now was his chance. Now or never.

He got up from the table and as he did so he looked up and along it, where the breakfast feast lay upon grand wood, and caught those gleaming golden-brown eyes that had shot to him as he rose.  
>Blaine nodded once towards him and smiled ever so slightly, so as not to raise the attention of his friends who sat around him. Kurt returned the tiny gesture that meant so much, and proceeded out of the hall.<p>

"Well, what was that about?" Mercedes breathed heavily, staring after her flamboyant best friend.

"At least he is happy…right?" Finn asked.

"For now," Rachel said, siding with Mercedes.

"But if he seems okay then…"

"It will change." Rachel said quickly.

"Why do you think that it will? I don't see why he can't just be happy from now on and you two can stop worrying about it."

"You're not a girl, Finn; you wouldn't understand." Mercedes said, putting a hand up to him.

"Neither is Kurt," Finn protested.

Mercedes looked at Rachel and shook her head. Rachel rolled her eyes. "He doesn't get it; he never will."

"I…" Finn trailed off, realising this was a battle he simply could not win.

Blaine watched as Kurt left the room, wondering where he was going to go. Was he about to go and face his bully? Undoubtedly the culprit would have a way of finding him eventually. Blaine wanted to get up and follow Kurt, but he decided to stay put; while school was in session none of the hallways would be empty for that guy to do any real damage, and this was something that Kurt had told him he wanted to do alone. He had offered to go with him, but that kid was relentless. Blaine admired him; he was far stronger than he deemed himself to be.

A pair of fingers snapped in front of Blaine's eyes.

He blinked and looked across at the short dark haired boy who sat beside him. "Not day dreaming again, are you?"

"No Wes," Blaine said, a little too quickly and attempting to laugh off the joke.

"So that would be a yes," David, a tall and broad shouldered boy with strikingly beautiful dark skin, smirked across the table at him. "Who is it this time?"

Blaine kicked him lightly under the table and grinned. "Wouldn't you like to know? No, honestly I was just thinking about some things."

"Well, don't leave us in suspense." Trent, a large, round-faced boy said, leaning in eagerly, his chin almost hitting the porridge bowl.

Blaine stuck out a spoon to cup his chin and stop his head from dropping too low. "That'd be terribly unhygienic. You guys aren't even meant to be at this table, you could at least not dip your body parts in our food," Trent withdrew, slightly abashed, but Blaine gave him a casual punch on the shoulder to show that he was only joking. Trent was a Hufflepuff and Wes and David were Ravenclaw, but they had come to join their friend Blaine with his own House, in order to discuss upcoming performances in the summer.

"This table had gotten about as unhygienic as it can with you sitting here." Wes retorted.

Blaine sighed, "Seriously, You-Smell-Bad jokes? That's what you resort to?"

Wes grinned. "I only say it because it is true and I care about you: I wouldn't want your body odour issues to affect your chances with whatever guy you're ogling today."

"…I wasn't ogling anyone," Blaine said distantly, stirring his cereal absent-mindedly as he did so. For some reason he didn't feel quite so hungry this morning.

"Well, it's a good thing you don't use too many brain cells to sing, because it sounds like your simple thought processes take a hell of a lot of time and concentration." David said, giving Blaine a knowing look as he noted the vocalist's dream-like state. "Now who is the guy?"

"It's not that," Blaine said, looking up at the red and gold drapes that hung from the ceiling. "I just found out some bad news from a…friend is all. He's going through some bad stuff and I was just thinking about how to help him out."

I guess calling Kurt a "friend" was acceptable, Blaine thought, they had only really spoken once, but it had been about something so serious… Well who knows, maybe he had pried too much into his life and Kurt wouldn't want to talk to him ever again after last night. Blaine certainly hoped that wouldn't be the case.

"Oh…" Said David, not expecting so grave an answer. "I'm sorry to hear that."

Blaine simply smiled at him and turned to the others who were watching him quizzically. "It's fine, nothing for you to worry about. So, I was thinking some time next week?"

"Huh?" Asked Trent.

"Singing. I want to practice some stuff for the summer shows we have planned," Blaine reminded them.

"Yes, sounds good. Hold on." Wes pulled out a small red object from his pocket; he turned away from them all and scribbled something on it with his quill. He brought it forward so that they all realised it was a tiny red envelope.

"Oh no…" David said, putting his hands over his ears. The others followed suit as Wes released the Howler.

"I WOULD LIKE EVERYONE TO NOTE AND TAKE CARE TO REMEMBER AT ALL TIMES THAT BLAINE ANDERSON SMELLS LIKE A TROLL'S FART."

"Oh real mature," Blaine said as the Howler turned to ash and fell onto Trent's eggs.

"Aww man," Said Trent as David snickered.

"Hey, if you can't stand the heat you should get out of the Dragon's Nest." Wes shrugged with a victorious grin.

"Should I even bother asking why you have Howlers just hanging around in your pocket?" Blaine asked.

"They come in useful, clearly." Wes answered, looking at Blaine as though his question had been utterly foolish.

"What else do you have in there?" Blaine asked, trying to peer at his friend's pockets.

"As much as I appreciate you examining my trousers, Blaine, I would ask you to desist. You will never know of the wonders that they contain." He winked and the three of them simultaneously rolled their eyes.

Kurt walked down the hallway, eyes flickering between all the faces that passed him. _Come on,_ he thought, _you always find me eventually, do it now while I am ready for it._ It couldn't be long before he stepped out from behind one of the stone walls - Kurt was sure of it. He would be lurking somewhere.

"Hummel!" Kurt turned to see Professor McGonagall walk towards him in the bustling corridor.

He swallowed; what did she want?

"I have seen you pass through this hallway three times in the last fifteen minutes. Care to tell me _why _you are wandering around aimlessly instead of going to class?" She said in her thick Scottish accent.

"I don't have class this morning, Professor. Free period."

She pursed her lips together. "Then why, in your free time, are you pacing the hallways instead of going to the library or your common room to study?"

"I was looking for someo - something." Kurt corrected himself.

"Well you better find it soon, Mr Hummel, because if I find you walking down here aimlessly again today, I will be forced to reprimand you for loitering. Now run along and study."

"Yes, of course, sorry Professor."

Damn. He would have to take a new course of action, and with the eyes of the Transfigurations teacher still boring into the back of his skull he decided to turn down towards the library.

Once inside the confines of the stacked shelves, weaving through the books until he was deep in the heart of the library, Kurt sank into a nearby chair, feeling a little disheartened. Still, while he was here he may as well study as McGonagall had suggested. He thumbed through a row of books nearest to him and pulled out one of the History of Magic volumes. He was too agitated to read it and truly consume the words on the page, however. Other things kept crossing his mind, such as the soft brush of Blaine's fingertips when he had tended to Kurt's hand the night before…

Kurt snapped the book shut and looked down at his hand that was encased in his glove so that none of the others would ask questions. He peeled the suede off of it now, revealing the bandage that Blaine had conjured to wrap around the wound. He stroked the material fondly. He probably should have gone to see Madame Pomfrey, but he didn't want to be asked any questions, besides, Blaine seemed to have known what he had been doing.

He had been so caring; it was truly unbelievable. Usually those sort of fantasies that Kurt let himself get carried away by never happened, but that time it had been so… Okay, it had not been perfect considering the circumstances, but still, they had managed to talk together alone, share personal details about their lives and he had mended him. Or at least a small part of him – it still counted.

Kurt sighed.

Even if the guy did bat for the same team as he did, that didn't mean there was any form of attraction there on Blaine's part. Just the same as how many straight guys and girls didn't end up falling for each other. Kurt highly doubted that he presented himself as the most alluring of male companions, sobbing like a baby in front of him.

He cringed, how embarrassing; there was no way he could have seen him in that way whatsoever after witnessing such a thing.

He had chased Finn for long enough and it had all to come to nothing, and he wasn't prepared to go through that again. Finn had told him that he had come on way too strongly and he could not risk that with Blaine if he wanted to sustain even the craziest hope that a guy like him could ever be interested in someone who had about as much sex appeal as a baby penguin. He would have to try and reserve himself. He was not going to mess it up if he had even a slither of a chance.

This was insane; he had known the guy two minutes. He probably hadn't even crossed Blaine's mind all day. He was getting way ahead of himself.

Just at that moment, a shadow spread across Kurt's form.

"Nice bandage." The figure whispered in a low and ominous tone.

Kurt got to his feet quickly, blood pumping through his ear drums as he faced Karofsky.

"I was looking for you earlier," He said hastily.

"Shhhh!" Madame Pince hissed from a few aisles over, but Kurt was far too amused by Karofsky's startled expression that fired him.

"Why?" The Slytherin asked, irritation detailing his features.

"I have had enough of you pushing me around and thinking that you can get away with it. There is more to me than you think, Karofsky, and I want to know why you're doing this."

"I told you." He growled; one huge fist curled up to his side, the other hand gripping the wooden shelving next to him.

"There are plenty of mud bloods in the school for you to pick on and you don't give them nearly as much 'special attention' as you do me, so I know for a fact that can't be the reason." Kurt explained what he had been mulling over for the past few days in a cold whisper. "So I have deduced that the latter part of your argument must be closer to the real reason why you are so angry and vulgar towards me."

"Shut up, Hummel."

"Ah- ha. I think we have found the problem then, haven't we?" Kurt felt exhilarated, he was finally standing up for himself properly and it felt good. They were on a level playing field. Karofsky may have brute strength, but Kurt had words and wit on his side and he wasn't about to let that weapon slip through his fingers.

"I'm warning you…" Karofsky said, one of his hulking hands going behind his back.

"You're not going to fight me here, Karofsky; Pince would hear us. Besides, I am not leaving here until I get some answers. What is it exactly about me being gay? Is it my dress sense? Too outspoken for you? Or perhaps you think my voice is too high, I'd talk in a deeper one, but then it may become too similar to your own sluggish drone that makes you sound like you have an IQ of below 40."

Karofsky gripped the shelving unit tighter so that the wood actually seemed to groan and splinter against his weight. "Seriously, Hummel, if you don't-"

"Or perhaps it isn't any of those things, but just fear of how I may act. Every straight guys nightmare thinking that I might corner you one day, isn't it? No offence, but you're hardly my type: chubby guys who sweat too much, no thank you. I should think you would have realised that I have better taste than that. So go on, tell me that what I have said so far isn't true. What other reason is there, Karofsky? Tell me!"

Karofsky stepped towards him suddenly, pulling his wand from behind his back. "Petrificus Totalus!" He exclaimed in a hushed growl before Kurt had a chance to bring out his own wand and shield himself. He felt as though he had been strapped into a straight jacket, within a millisecond his arms and legs had clamped together like a plank and he fell backwards, hitting the ground with some considerable force, yet being unable to scream.

Karofsky's face hovered above him. "You're lucky I didn't do worse," He threatened. "Try anything like that again and I swear that I will. You have no idea, Hummel. I'll make you pay for what you said."

Then he went, leaving Kurt trapped within his own body, staring up at the bright light of the ceiling.

Kurt made his way through the common room gloomily. Having to be brought out of Karofsky's curse by a Second Year was truly a humiliating experience. He was in a foul mood by the time he reached the corner where the others sat.

"Kurt!" Rachel exclaimed.

"Where have you been, dude?" Finn asked; punching him lightly on the arm, yet the action still made Kurt flinch, since his brother had no idea of the injury sustained there. "Whoops, sorry"

Finn looked guilty, clearly thinking he was merely stronger than he had first realised.

"We haven't seen you all morning," Mercedes said. "Where did you get to?"

"Library." Kurt answered in monotone.

"All this time? I didn't know you were _that _serious about studying," Rachel laughed.

Kurt didn't answer; he merely sat himself down on one of the empty chairs.

"We were thinking of going to see the Quidditch game in a couple weeks, take a break from it all - and support Finn of course - what do you think?" Mercedes asked.

"Yeah, dude, come watch the best Keeper performance you will have ever seen!" Finn joked.

"Okay," Kurt replied. His thoughts flitted back to Blaine being a Chaser on the Gryffindor team. He felt his heart sink. He wasn't sure he even wanted to face him now after what had happened. He wasn't mad at Blaine of course, but the whole thing had gone terribly. Maybe Blaine would be disappointed in him. At the very least, he would ask him what had happened and he highly doubted his ability to lie to those gleaming eyes. Kurt didn't think he could bear having to retell the tale to Blaine, especially one so embarrassing. He definitely had no chance with him now…it wasn't even worth thinking about.

He collected himself from such miserable thoughts to try and give Finn an encouraging smile, but he reckoned it turned out to be more of a grimace.

It was only then that he realised the others had been talking avidly amongst themselves while he had been so absorbed.

"No, I haven't even talked to her," Finn grumbled.

"She told me that you said I looked more like a goblin than a person. I put up with most of these height jokes, but that one better not be true, Finn." Rachel snapped.

"Rachel, you know Santana speaks utter crap to stir up things, don't you?"

"Rachel I was there, she didn't say Finn said it, she said that you looked like a goblin and that Finn looked like a cave troll." Mercedes corrected.

"She what?" Finn exclaimed.

"Seriously guys, it's Santana, she'll say anything to get a rise out of you, you literally just said it yourself. If I could kick her nasty Slytherin behind sometimes…"

Finn's expression was now a little miserable, and Rachel gave him a sympathetic look, making an attempt to change the subject; "Did you get your Potions essay back today?"

This just made him look even more down-trodden. "Yeah, Snape said it was worth about as much as owl-droppings."

Mercedes grimaced. "Why not get Kurt to help? He's good at Potions… when he turns up to it that is."  
>"Thanks Mercedes," Kurt said bluntly.<p>

"Well, you _are _good at it, maybe you could help Finn out?"  
>"To tell you the truth, I haven't even started the thing myself yet." Kurt said in all honesty.<p>

"What?" Asked Rachel in surprise, leaning forward dramatically and hissing at him; "He set it weeks ago and everyone knows his papers take the longest! Potion's theory is so complex! Why haven't you done it?"

"I've been busy." Kurt said quickly, wishing he hadn't said anything about it now.

"With what?" Mercedes asked.

"Nothing. Just stuff. Sorry, I've got a headache. I'm going to go up to my room." He stood up suddenly and headed towards the marble staircase.

"Kurt, what's wrong?"

"Seriously, Mercedes, just drop it," Kurt said as he turned away and climbed the cold steps.

The outspoken diva turned to the other two, who looked back at her anxiously. She sighed; "That boy really needs to get a hold of his mood swings…"


	4. Chapter 4: Friends

**Hello readers,**

**I am glad that you are all enjoying this story so far! I was so nervous that, under the mass of stories posted on this site, my own would crumble under the weight of it all, but I am relieved to find that hasn't been the case! Every time I receive an email saying that another person has added this to their subscription it gives me butterflies, just like the butterflies Klaine give me when I see them on Glee. Who else is struggling with the drawn-out wait for Season 3, by the way? I know it isn't just me!**  
><strong>Anyway, I thought I would add this small note just as a thank you to all of you for reading this far Please stay with me; I have lots more to come! I wrote this all a while back and just continued to write until finally plucking up the courage (yeah, that reference is deliberate… by the way, if you ever read something related to Starkid in these stories that is probably me just attempting to be clever and sneak it in. If you don't knowlike Starkid that doesn't matter; it isn't wholly relevant to the story, I just always have quotes and lyrics bouncing round in my head and they worm their way out somehow!) to post it on here and see what people think! Please review if you find the time, I would love to hear from you, and have been so happy to hear from those who have already commented! Criticisms also most welcome, I am always looking to improve, although I'm not going to lie: some positive feedback wouldn't go amiss! Anyway, I am rambling. I do that. Sorry, I will get on with what you actually came on this page to read!**

* * *

><p>Chapter Four: Friends.<p>

(Songs: Wicked Soundtrack – Defying Gravity… I'm sorry; I couldn't NOT put that in somewhere…)

Everything was black the next day; even the sky seemed to match Kurt's feelings as he pulled on his black robes and black socks. He put a black velvet waistcoat on underneath and a grey shirt beneath that. If you can't dress for your mood on days like these, what can you dress for?

He felt as though he really had been backed into a corner and everything felt so helpless. Yes, he was a fan of Broadway and they often had a certain degree of melodrama, but Kurt was most definitely feeling it again today, and to a greater extent than he would care for. He felt as though some unknown force was trying to break the glass panel of his life, to fracture and shatter it into thousands of tiny pieces.

An opened letter lay on his desk that he had received the night before, after telling the others that he wasn't feeling well, he had found it waiting for him with his small barn owl, Pavarotti.

_Dear Kurt and Finn,_

_I do not wish to alarm you both, because I know you have a lot of examinations coming up, and we are really rooting for you to do well._

_Burt has taken a bad turn and we had to take him back to the hospital. Now, I know that you will want to, but there is no need for you to come home. The doctor assures us that the previous heart attack was the worst of it, there just seems to be another complication from the surgery that they need to look into. I haven't been given a lot of details, but it really shouldn't be anything to cause any worry. I wouldn't have mentioned it to you at all, but I thought that you would have been too upset if you had known that I had kept it from you. _

_Hopefully you two can look after each other. He will be fine, I am sure of it, and he seems well enough. Please don't let this get you down; we just want you to do the best that you can at school and we will both see you in the summer._

_Good luck with everything,_

_Love Carole.  
><em>

He had not gone to talk to Finn after showing him the letter, nor did he want to. He knew that Carole's words of optimism were probably mostly bravado to save him from panicking. He knew that this was bad.

He just felt empty in the pit of his stomach as he pulled the sleeves out of the cuffs of his robes. He was vaguely aware of himself being on the brink of both emotional and physical deterioration, and he wasn't sure how much more of it he could take. Today, more than ever, he wanted to go back to bed and bury his head under the covers, especially seeing as he hadn't slept at all the previous night. Yet that was not how Kurt Hummel did things. He would just have to suck it up and face the world; hopefully tuning most of it out and just get by. He really hoped that none of the others tried to obsess over him like the last time his father had been admitted to hospital. He appreciated the gesture, but he really just needed his space right now.

_We all have to be out for ourselves at the end of the day._

Yep. Her wise words really were equally annoying as her incessant babble. Kurt sighed and went downstairs, where he was sure they would all be waiting for him…

He had been right. They didn't say much, however. Other than a "You doing okay?" From Finn and sympathetic glances from the other two. I think by now they had adapted to how closed off he became at these times. They had all been there for him the last time his father had been in hospital, had seen how it had eaten away at him, gnawing the pit of his stomach. He was used to being alone when dealing with things, and this was no different.

He just nodded to them all, attempting a small smile.

"Shall we get to class? I can't really afford to be late again."

"You don't have to you know, Kurt," Mercedes said slowly but he merely shook his head.

"It has to be done." Burt would have been furious with him if he knew that he was skipping classes because of his condition.

The others did not think it wise to argue with him, and so the four of them made their way out of the common room.

In all honesty, if you had asked Kurt what he had said or done that morning he would have been unable to tell you. It was all a strange haze, as though he had drifted through classes on autopilot. Oblivious to what was going on, answering questions automatically like a machine and not realising until a while after that he had done so, or what he had answered with.

He allowed this strange numbness to wash over him. In a way he knew that he was over-reacting. Burt would probably be fine, but the refusal to go and see him stung the worst. He was so used to caring for him, and being around at these times. Kurt wasn't even sure if that was the real problem. He knew it certainly was not the whole problem. He felt defeated and trodden on. He felt flat, and nothing about Kurt's personality, appearance or general character had ever been described as flat before, but on an emotional level that was how he was.

* * *

><p>His friends could tell that he had not taken the news well over the next few days, and although they still didn't know why, they worried that it was contributing to his already distressed state.<p>

"What do we do?" Mercedes said, addressing the other two, when Kurt had crossed the room in Divination to put away their crystal ball.

"I don't think there is a lot we can do," Finn said matter-of-factly as Professor Trelawney was getting distracted by a blonde Hufflepuff girl.

"When Lord Tubbington looked into my crystal ball at home he licked it, does that mean that in the future I should wash more?"

"Who is Lord Tubbington, child? Is he one of your ancestral predecessors trying to contact you from the beyond?" Trelawney asked excitedly.

"No, he's my cat."

"We have to do something." Mercedes said, giving Finn an angry look.

"No, you don't," Finn said, sounding slightly irritated.  
>"I do - we <em>all <em>do. We can find and empty classroom and talk to him about it later, we have to get him to open up to us and-"

"No, Mercedes, we don't," Finn said quite loudly, although not at a high enough volume for anyone else to look up. "Seriously, I know you guys are just trying to help, and think that you know exactly what Kurt is feeling all the time, but sometimes you just need to give a guy his space, okay?" Mercedes tried to open her mouth but Finn wasn't finished. "Look, I know that you guys don't think I ever have a clue about anything and that I can be slow sometimes, which I can, but just take my word for it this time: if he hasn't come to you about his problems chances are he doesn't want to share them. Just…leave him alone and let him talk to you in his own time!"

With that Finn pushed the remainder of his books into his bag and headed down the turreted stairway, before either of them could say anything.

"He is so sexy when storms out…" Rachel whispered staring after him. Then she shook her head a little, going red as she realised that she had said that out loud; "I still maintain that I could do it better, however."  
>Mercedes would have rolled her eyes if she didn't still have her face fixed in a state of shock, eyebrows raised and mouth slightly opened. She had never known Finn to explode that way.<p>

Kurt wandered back over to their table, brow furrowed as he glanced in the direction of Finn's descending form.

"What's up with him?"

The other two merely shrugged and averted their gaze, "Beats me."

Kurt stared after his brother, a frown on his face. Perhaps he had been thinking too selfishly about everything, maybe Finn really needed someone to lean on right now as well…

* * *

><p>Finn didn't speak to any of them for the rest of the day. He wasn't angry, or didn't seem to be - just vacant. Rachel and Mercedes had decided that it was probably best to take his advice about Kurt and leave him be also. Rachel kept glancing over to where he sat a little way away from them, but every time she looked back Kurt gave her a tiny shake of the head to indicate that now was not the time to bother him.<p>

As they were leaving Potions, the last lesson of the day (which seemed to go on for an age) Kurt caught Finn by the arm as the other two went ahead. "Do you want to talk about things? You don't have to…"

Finn hesitated for a moment, contemplating whether or not he wanted to talk and also that Kurt had reached out to him to talk at all. He gave one quick nod.

"Okay, I'll meet you up in the boys dormitory later?"

"Yeah, thanks man. I'll come up after Quidditch practice." Finn replied. Kurt gave him a quick smile but let him go on.

* * *

><p>Before he returned to the common room Kurt decided to skip dinner and go for a long walk. He knew this would earn him further curiosity from the others, which may well lead to further intrusions, but he really was not hungry or in the mood to be around a huge crowd of people at that moment in time.<p>

He wrapped himself up in his black trench coat with faux fur lining, pulling the earflaps of his trapper hat close around his head and nuzzling his chin down in his cashmere blue scarf.

He strolled unthinkingly around the grounds for a good hour or so and eventually found himself heading towards the lake, entering into a small alcove surrounded by trees.

The wind whipped through his hair that he tucked beneath his hat as he listened to the hard ground crunch beneath his boots. He undid the laces and slipped his feet out so that he could walk and feel the earth between his toes.

Kurt bent low to the ground and picked up a stone, brushing the smooth surface with his thumb he stared down at the little object, before turning to skim it lightly across the cool water that shimmered from the sunlight that bounced around upon it.

A twig snapped behind him, and Kurt whirled around in fright, expecting to see Karofsky's hulking figure menacingly stood behind him.

But it was nothing.

Nobody was there.

He was completely alone… as always.

Kurt looked back out across the lake, tears prickling his eyes as he shut them tight, allowing the salty liquid to roll its way down his cheeks.

He felt a melody rise in his heart.

He opened his mouth a fraction and whispered.

_Something had changed within me; something is not the same_

He crouched, sitting down on a rock beneath him and clasping his hands around his knees, ignoring the shivers that ran over his body from the cold.

_I'm through with playing by the rules of someone else's game_

_Too late for second guessing, too late to go back to sleep_

_It's time to trust my instincts, close my eyes and leap_

_It's time to try defying gravity_

_I think I'll try defying gravity_

_Kiss me goodbye I'm defying gravity_

_And you won't bring me down_

He thought of Karofsky's harsh and malicious features and his jaw clenched as he took a deep breath to continue.

_I'm through accepting limits, cos someone says they're so_

_Some things I cannot change, but till I try I'll never know_

_Too long I've been afraid of, losing love I guess I've lost_

_Well if that's love it comes at much too high a cost_

He stood up once more, fists clenched as he walked out towards the water, allowing it to lap over his bare feet, ignoring the chills that ran over his body to his extremities as he did so.

_I'd sooner buy defying gravity_

_Kiss me goodbye I'm defying gravity_

_I think I'll try defying gravity_

_And you won't bring me down_

_I'd sooner buy defying gravity_

_Kiss me goodbye I'm defying gravity_

_I think I'll try defying gravity_

_And you won't bring me down_

_Bring me down_

Kurt let his breathing steady for a moment before…

Soft clapping behind him made him whirl around on the spot.

Blaine was perched delicately on a tree stump behind him, around the place where Kurt had thought he had heard a twig snap earlier.

Kurt flushed crimson and looked alarmed at his unknown audience.

Blaine smiled but looked down for a moment at the floor, obviously a little abashed himself. "Sorry; I didn't mean to sneak up on you, I swear I'm not some weirdo who skulks around in forests." He chuckled, but Kurt was still too stunned to speak. "I saw you walking down here from the Quidditch Pitch and thought I'd skip out early to check if you were okay."

All Kurt could do was nod, a little dumbfounded. He remembered the game that the others had suggested he go to and also his jumping to conclusions when it came to Blaine playing the game and being straight. Way to break the stereotype...Perhaps he should keep that in mind a little more. He wasn't a huge sports fan himself, of course, but now there may be good reason to go besides supporting Finn…

Blaine hopped off of his seat on the stump, the thin material of his Quidditch uniform fluttering in the breeze, and Kurt could see Goosebumps pattern his bare forearms as he approached. He came up closer, his sweet scent washing over the younger boy as Blaine's eyes blazed with a sudden intensity. "You were… brilliant. To put it simply," He grinned, commenting on Kurt's performance. "I wish I could find more apt words of praise, but I am afraid I am at a bit of a loss."

"I wasn't very well prepared… I can do better," Kurt said, eager to assure him.

"I don't doubt," Blaine said, placing his hands into his pockets and glancing sideways at Kurt as the both stood next to each other.

"So… any reason you're out here alone?" Blaine asked. "Wouldn't have anything to do with the guy who has been bothering you, would it?"

"Partly." Kurt replied.

Blaine raised an eyebrow at the bullying only being a factor, but decided not to pry into whatever else was worrying the guy. "Did you…confront him?"  
>Kurt breathed out in a humourless laugh, "Yes."<p>

"Didn't go so well?" Blaine assumed, grimacing a little.

Kurt rocked his head from side to side with an unimpressed expression, "Do you count him cursing me into paralysis a success? If not then no, not great."

Blaine drew breath in through his teeth. "Ah… I guess I'm not so great at the advice… Sorry about that."

"No, it's fine I think… I think I at least narrowed it down a little. Why he hates me, that is."

"And?" Kurt was not looking at the older boy as he watched the profile of the young Gryffindor's face, focusing on every changing expression that he emoted with infinitesimal grace.

"Well, it is most definitely related to me being gay, but I'm not _exactly_ sure what about it makes him so mad… It's not exactly because of how I act or dress that way… More simply that I am and not afraid to show it."

Blaine nodded and considered this. "I mean, obviously I don't know the guy, but I would say that perhaps he is either homophobic, born from a long line of those who are prejudiced or gay himself."

Kurt gave Blaine a curious look at the last suggestion. "I doubt it."

Blaine shrugged, "You never know — just an idea."

Kurt shook his head. "I don't know, whatever it is I don't think it's going to stop any time soon."

Suddenly he felt a warm hand grip his shoulder in a friendly gesture. Kurt looked surprised as the contact sent a spark of electricity dancing along the length of his spine, but did not move away and Blaine said softly; "You don't have any friends who are, do you?"

Kurt shook his head.

"I know you don't me very well, but if you ever need to talk about things …I'm always around somewhere. Come find me; I won't mind."

He let his hand drop and Kurt turned to face him, a puzzled look etched on his face. "Why are you being so nice to me? Not that I'm not grateful… I am, I really am, but you don't need to feel as though you have to help me, just because you caught me at a bad time before. I mean… Don't feel obliged to-"  
>"Kurt, Kurt," Blaine held up his hands and laughed lightly. "It's fine, seriously. I'm not doing this because I feel obligated. I like you; you seem like a good guy who has been caught up in… a lot of crap. I want to help you out. Also, to be honest, there aren't many people I can talk to about all this stuff, either."<p>

Kurt allowed a small smile to creep over his face. "So…we're friends?"  
>Blaine grinned. "Friends. Most definitely."<p>

* * *

><p>Kurt went up the stairs; mind still swimming with thoughts of the earlier conversation that bounced around his skull. He had to put all thoughts of Blaine out of his head, however difficult that may be. Right now he needed to be there for Finn and think about what it was his brother was going through.<p>

Kurt pushed open the door to his room and found Finn sitting there, waiting patiently for him on his own bed.

"Where did you get to? We missed you at dinner." Finn asked as Kurt closed the door quietly behind his back and allowed his heart to quit beating quite so fast.

"I went to clear my head," He said airily. That had been the intention, however it hadn't quite worked out that way…

He crossed over to his own bed, and sat on the edge, crossing one leg over the other as Finn wheeled himself around so that they sat face to face across from each other.

"Makes sense." Finn said understandingly, "Are you okay about…everything?"

Kurt put up one finger and wagged it, shutting his eyes in defiance. "We aren't here to talk about me, spot light is on you my friend and I don't give it away easily or often, so you would do well to make the most of it while you can."  
>Finn smiled in spite of himself, looking down at the woollen carpet beneath them. "I - err, don't know where to start."<p>

"You should star at the very beginning – a very good place to start." He chuckled but Finn looked at Kurt blankly, and he sighed, continuing: "Well, first off let's state that we shall both speak honestly to each other." Kurt said and Finn nodded. "Right, so what made you snap at Mercedes and Rachel earlier?"

Finn bit his lip, but he had vowed to be truthful. "They wanted to badger you about how you were doing."

Kurt had expected as much, but he decided to wave that detail away. "So, why did that make you lash out at them?"  
>"Because… Because I know that if it had been me… That it is me - in part - I wouldn't want them harassing me. I mean, I know that he's your Dad and everything, but… Well, he is sort of the only thing I have ever really known to be like a father figure… I love my Dad but I never really got a chance to know him… and Burt well, he is kind of a Dad to both of us, like Carole is sort of like a Mum to you. Of course you come first in his eyes, I'm not trying to say that-"<p>

Kurt held a hand up to prevent him rambling further. "I am not going to get mad at you for saying that, Finn, I know I have been sensitive in the past…" He remembered the unbidden jealously over way he and Burt had bonded a while back, with their common ground of Football trivia and flannel shirts. He took a deep breath, "We are all a sort of family unit now. I have learnt to share…sort of."

Finn seemed pleased to hear this. "Well, yeah… I just… didn't think they should be hassling you."

Kurt drummed his fingers against the back of his forearm. The uninjured fingers that is. He still had the other underneath his glove. He had managed to hide it beneath his robes from the others quite successfully thus far. "While I find it touching to think that concern for my own well being would provoke such a violent reaction - I'm not saying it _would_ shock me — but I get the sense that isn't the only thing bothering you?"

Finn shuffled uncomfortably. "Well… I mean… I really am struggling with that Potions essay… and everything really. I'm not smart like you Kurt; I can't get a grip on all these essays. The practical assessments are fine, but all this theory work… You handle it way better than I do."

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Usually I wouldn't protest to such an array of compliments, and I don't entirely, seeming as the majority of them are indeed truthful, but I am not fooled by your deflections Finn."

"I'm not deflecting." He said defensively.

Kurt sighed. "I can help you out with work once I catch up myself, and you well know this. You're upset about Burt but that's not all. I may not have always been so keyed into your emotions or intentions last year…" They both avoided eye contact for a moment at mentioning that uncomfortable sequence of events, "…But I can tell that there is something else deep within that mind of yours that you show such little confidence in."

Something he, Kurt, felt that right now he could unquestionably relate to.

Finn still looked uncertain.

"You can refuse to tell me if you so wish, but then agreeing to talk to me about it here was all a pretty pointless activity. I'm not going to ask you to tell me every detail of your heart's desire… I get that you're not like the girls, but there is clearly something bothering you, Finn."

"All right; it's Rachel." Finn said suddenly breaking his resolve as he looked to the ceiling, shaking his head a little as if angry with himself for giving in.

Kurt smiled and nodded knowingly. The satisfaction of being right was never a thing that he didn't allow himself to bask in, at least for a moment.

"I don't get it, I mean yeah, she's annoying. And small, I mean we stand next to each other and it's like Jack and the Giant from the beanstalk."

"Or Gandalf and a Hobbit." Kurt interjected.

"Right, exactly. And she's always…always just on at me. About everything. About exams and studying. She always wants to study together, which just doesn't help at all because she's so damn distracting, I mean, she never stops talking, or moving or…smelling so good." Finn flushed red. "I mean, it's not like I'm obsessed with her or anything, I'm not but she's just…always around and talking to me and… like, she wants me to sing with her-"

"Apparently she is asking that of a lot of people," Kurt said rolling his eyes at her earlier challenges to him.

"Yeah… and, well, I don't even know if I can sing but now I kind of have to and she's…well you know…amazing and I can't measure up to that. But she will be expectant and I can't do it if she's watching. Her eyes make me uncomfortable."

Kurt had heard enough; he stood up and took Finn by the hands.

"What are you doing?" Finn asked, a little alarmed.

"_We_ are standing, come on." He pulled the tall boy to his feet.

"Why are we doing that?"

"Because…" Kurt brought him over to the middle of the room and then took out his wand, tapping it a few times on the bedpost so that a simple melody began to stream from it. "You are going to sing to me."

"What?" Finn exclaimed, looking more panicked than a cat caught out in the rain.

"It's not so difficult Finn, just open your mouth and sing, let the song come out."

"I can't."

"You like Rachel, yes?"

"I never said that." Finn protested.

"Not in so many words, but I think it all goes without saying." Finn looked disgruntled. "Look, the way to win a girl like Rachel's heart is to step up to her level - and Rachel doesn't measure anything more highly than singing… and wearing ridiculous outfits designed for three year olds. Anyway, my point is that the way to impress her is to show her that you've got a set of lungs on you."

"But what if I don't?" Finn asked, anxiously.

"Well, let me be the judge of that, before you go parading yourself around in front of her."

Finn swallowed. "Fair point."

"So, go on. Let's hear it."

* * *

><p><strong>So, I found the fun tool which allows me to underline after sections! Fun, huh? You learn a new thing every day, or so I am told. Thank you again :)<strong>


	5. Chapter 5: Assumptions

Chapter Five: Assumptions

Songs: Dionne Warwick – That's What Friends Are For

* * *

><p>Kurt awoke to a tapping at his window a week later. The days had passed by rather uneventfully; he had more or less drifted through them. Asides from a few sneaked conversations with Blaine who he was becoming slowly more and more mesmerised by.<br>Kurt opened his eyes reluctantly and glanced over at Finn's shadowed form, fast asleep. He scowled and pulled himself unwillingly out from underneath the warm and inviting duvet.

The owl persistently tapped his beak against the window.

"All right, Pavarotti, calm yourself," He mumbled, still half asleep and talking to animals that couldn't actually respond. He pulled the window open, allowing the tiny bird to zoom inside of the room, circling it twice before perching on Kurt's shoulder.

"You are way too excitable for this hour," Kurt muttered darkly, but the bird merely stuck out its leg impatiently and nipped Kurt's ear. "Ouch! Okay, I get the point!"

He untied the letter with a glare at the bird that then went and sat on top of his dresser.

He recognised his father's handwriting on the envelope instantly and suddenly he didn't feel so groggy. His fingers quaked against the seal, wrenching it open as he rushed to scan its contents, holding his breath.

_Dear Kurt,_

_I'm sorry if we worried you earlier in the week. I just thought that I would write and tell you that everything is okay. They did some exploratory surgery and ran some tests but it was a false alarm and I am in perfect health. Well, feeling a little tired now, and have to rest for a few days - but nothing that I can't handle. I hope that you haven't been allowing this all to distract you from your studies. I will see you very soon I am sure._

_Miss you, kid._

_Love Burt._

_P.S. Remember to tell Finn.  
><em>

Burt never had a way with words and the letter was short, but Kurt hugged it to his chest as what felt like an iron fist that had been strapped around it unclenched and allowed him to breath again.

After a moment he jumped across the room at a similar speed to Pavarotti and shook Finn awake.

"Mphhrrb?" Was the kind of sound that was uttered from Finn's sleep-ridden lips as he blinked several times, trying to focus on the excited face that loomed over him. "Whatdyyawant?"

Kurt said nothing but held the letter out so that it was an inch away from his nose. Finn sat up, taking the letter and scanning over the writing himself. His face broke into a beaming smile. "Thank God for that!"

Kurt practically pranced into the Great Hall for breakfast that morning. Burt was better; he hadn't run into Karofsky since the library incident and there was a certain boy who he was now free from worry to dedicate a great deal of thinking time to and obsess over. Which he planned to do. A lot.

Speaking of whom, he caught Blaine's eye from the other end of the table as he sat beside Mercedes, giving her a warm greeting that she readily received. Blaine smiled and raised his eyebrow questioningly at Kurt's high spirits. He was resolved to tell him about it later.  
>"I'm so happy to hear about your Dad, Kurt," Mercedes told him, leaning against his shoulder genially.<br>"Yes, as am I. Pumpkin juice, anyone?" He said offering it around like an excited salesperson.

Rachel held out her cup. "I was surprised to hear he was well so soon, but pleased nonetheless."  
>"Same," Kurt replied, giving a quick glance at Finn, "And let me just say that I think you will have a couple of surprises heading your way soon, Miss Berry."<br>She looked a little perplexed and Finn's eyes went wide as he glared at Kurt who merely smirked. Rachel didn't see anyway, as they were sitting on the same side of the table, and Mercedes was too busy casting a spell to try and heat up her bacon.

"All right then…" She said warily.

Kurt took a joyous sip of Pumpkin juice.

"You'll see," He said, smugly.

Finn just stirred his porridge glumly so that Kurt pressed his toes gently with his foot under the table. Finn looked up at Kurt's smile of encouragement, but still found it hard to accept.

* * *

><p>Breakfast was almost over and Blaine looked up to see that Kurt and his friends were about to leave. He quickly looked around at the others who did not look as though they were in any position to go. Wes and David were in the middle of a fully-fledged (and highly mature) ketchup battle while Trent was burrowing around under the table looking for a fork that he had dropped. Blaine sighed and watched as the four 5th Years headed towards the exit.<p>

He stared down at the plate of food that he no longer felt interested in. He wasn't sure what exactly it was that made him so intrigued by the Hummel kid. He also didn't know why he had not mentioned him to any of his friends. Not even about his voice - it would have been perfectly plausible to drop his name casually into conversation, saying he had overheard him singing. Blaine didn't even understand himself why he was making the whole thing so secretive. He wondered if Kurt had mentioned him to his friends. He had never seen them look at him, and Kurt never openly greeted him when they passed one another, so he assumed not. They had met a few times for some more casual and light-hearted conversation, but never in the presence of their other friends. It was weird, and Blaine decided that he would do away with such silliness and apprehension and say hello to Kurt next time they passed in the hallways. They were friends; it was normal. He had nothing to hide.

Now, that voice… Caught off guard and everything. Blaine was glad that he had managed to stay so cool after Kurt had found him watching; he had been quite stunned by that voice. It was breath taking - truly unbelievable. Blaine had never witnessed anything so utterly exquisite before. He had never really understood the concept of having one's mind blown before that moment, but he had been utterly dazzled by everything about Kurt in that clearing. He was unique. He reckoned that was what fascinated him so; the song had moved him and piqued his curiosity. He needed to know more about this guy, he craved the information, and he had a feeling that he had a lot more to him than the fractured person that Blaine had been confronted with in recent times. Kurt had a slight glint in his eye today, which was a world different to how those eyes had been only last week. Those resplendent, bewitching bright blue eyes that could command oceans with just one glance…

Blaine had to shake himself slightly. What was that about? What had he been thinking about, again? Oh yes, the change he had seen in the Fifth year; he was pleased to see it, but also frightfully desperate to know why it was so.

If you had asked Blaine at that moment why he wanted to become so involved in what was happening with Kurt, he would not have been able to tell you. Most likely he wouldn't even acknowledge the fact that he cared as much as he did whatsoever, the yearning to discover more and to see that boy again was lurking deep beneath his subconscious. He would insist that he were merely curious, and wished to look out for his new friend. Yet he had taken notice, and this was only the beginning.

* * *

><p>Kurt's friends were beginning to enjoy their old friend being back to his old ways as they exited their Defence Against The Dark Arts classroom.<p>

"I just couldn't get the wand movement right, that was all," Mercedes said, shoving Kurt playfully.

"Per-lease! I haven't seen anything that tragic since Eva Mendes wore that leopard print maxi-dress. My eyes were never the same again," Kurt retorted, laughing whole-heartedly and covering his eyes, pretending to stumble around blindly, earning guffaws from the others.

"Hey, you didn't do it perfectly either!" She argued.

"No, I did it fine, it was Rachel who caused the picture to fly off the wall, not me."

Rachel's mouth dropped open in shock-horror: "It was not! It wasn't even in my eye-line!"

"Exactly, your aim and faulty wandsmanship never fail to astound me."

Finn looked up happily. "I did it first time. Did you see how that bird moved when I got it — was like watching a slow-motion clip from a movie!"

"I _can_ do it, see: Aresto Momentum!" Mercedes said, pointing her wand at one of the windows, trying to slow the flutter of one of the drapes hanging by the side.

"Mercedes, _no_!" Kurt yelled but it was too late, the window trembled and then proceeded to shatter into many pieces, each razor-sharp shard zooming towards them at lightning speed.

They all quickly ducked to avoid the flying torpedoes of glass, shooting to the other side of the hallway as the slices flew towards the ground, ready to cut through their skin like knives.

"Reparo!" A voice yelled from ahead of them, before the sound of the shards on marble could even be heard. They peeked up to see the fragments fly backwards and slot themselves back into their original pattern, restoring the window to perfect condition.

"What the hell, dude, you could have shredded us to pieces!" Finn exclaimed as they straightened up, eyes bulging in astonishment towards Mercedes.

Kurt glanced up to where the mending spell had been cast from and felt a warm jolt in the pit of his stomach, which proceeded to simmer upwards and lodge in his throat.

"It'd be nice to have a day where I walk down a hallway in this place and don't have to face mortal peril. Just once," The dark haired boy chuckled as he brought himself out of his crouched position, his wand had been tucked under the crook of his arm that had shielded his face as he cast the spell. "Hey Kurt, hope none of them caught you."

"Oh, umm, no. None of them did. Thank you," Kurt breathed, glancing a little nervously around at his friend's puzzled faces as their saviour walked towards them all.

"Blaine Anderson," He said, holding out a hand to Mercedes, who shook it tentatively. "Thought I would congratulate you on that explosive hex of yours."

He looked over at Rachel and Finn, smiling warmly.

"Hey man, nice save there," Said Finn, knowing Blaine from Quidditch. "Hopefully I can make ones equally as good next week in the match!"

"That's what we're all counting on," Blaine replied cheerfully.

Rachel was the first of the girls to get over her befuddlement and told him confidently; "That wasn't what Mercedes had intended to do. She wanted to slow the drape movement."

Mercedes elbowed Rachel in annoyance.

Blaine raised an eyebrow and looked over to Kurt who still felt a little winded, even though no blow had been physically struck to him. Then Blaine looked back at the other three - Mercedes and Rachel had not missed the eye contact between the two boys.

"Well, it added a bit of drama to my morning at least. Sorry, if you'll excuse me; I really should get to class, but I am sure I will see you all again, under less dangerous circumstances I hope. Rachel, Mercedes, Finn…" Then he quickly nodded to the countertenor and his eyes brightened slightly, "Kurt."

He walked away from them and as soon as he had rounded the corner Kurt braced himself for the firing squad of questions from the two girls - Finn seemed quite unperturbed by their near fatal-scarring and rescue.

"Was that the singer from Valentine's Day?"

"How did he know who I was?"

"Since when do you know him, Kurt?"

"He acted like he knew you quite well…"

Kurt bit his tongue anxiously and was still trying to muddle through his emotions at seeing Blaine, let alone being ready to enter into deep discussion about the vocalist. "I ran into him the other day," He said eventually, acting nonchalant with a causal wave of his hand.

"When?"  
>"Where?"<br>"Doing what?"  
>Kurt carried on walking down the corridor, knowing that they would all follow him so as not to let him escape their demands. "I was out in the grounds… he heard me singing." He decided it was best to leave out their real first meeting.<p>

"And you told him about us?" Rachel asked.

"He already knows Finn, and he probably just knows you from around school, you are fairly loud for such a little person."

"Enough with the short jokes already!" Rachel growled at him, she looked around at the slowly emptying corridor, wishing to interrogate Kurt further, but just pouting and muttering; "Come on Finn, we have to go to Arithmancy." A subject she had bullied him into taking, all though from what Kurt could see he showed no protests when she took him by the hand and pulled him towards the staircases.

Mercedes had remained fairly quiet, and both of them now had a free. She walked along-side Kurt, apparently lost in thought. Kurt was almost positive that he did not want to engage in any conversation that had to do with the topic she was perusing in her mind and so he kept quiet, hoping that she would not try to speak to him. They carried along the hallway until they reached the large oak doors that led into the courtyard.

* * *

><p>There weren't many people around outside, most of them were in class, only the odd late-comer and skivers ran hurriedly past them as they headed out.<br>Mercedes eventually broke her resolve.

"You like him, don't you?"

Oh sweet Jesus. He decided that playing dumb was probably the best tactic. "Who?"

"Blaine."

"Huh? Why do you say that?" He said, making sure that he did not actually look at her, he pretended to be thumbing through his bag as they had come to a stop next to a great, stone wall.

"Because you went very quiet when he approached us; you looked like you were about to have a panic attack." She said, trying to supress her laughter.

_Perfect. I bet that was super attractive_, thought Kurt, as he dreaded to think whether Blaine had picked up on that or not.

"You're being ridiculous," He managed to say calmly, slinging the bag strap over his shoulder once more, and even managing to give his best friend a scathingly sarcastic look as though she was being completely moronic.

"I don't blame you, he is kind of dreamy," She said smirking. "Is he even, you know, playing for your side?"

"Yes, Mercedes, he is gay. What of it?" Kurt said; feeling a little annoyed now as he turned to carry on walking along the wall with no real purpose of direction.

She fell back into step with him. "Well, the fact that you know that about him _at least _suggests to me that the two of you talked about more than singing. That or you've just generally been stalking him."

"I have not been stalking him!" He said angrily, irritated with himself for having revealed too much.

"Must be the first one then," She said, smug as ever and he smarted at his second consecutive slip up.

"You don't know what you're talking about… I have to go to the Owlery. I need to send a letter to my Dad," He gave her a quick smile before he turned however, "And you best be on better behaviour, Miss Jones, by the time I get back. No more exploding school property."

Mercedes laughed, she did not follow him but simply watched him go, figuring he wanted to write the letter alone, and feeling satisfied that she had finally managed to figure something out that was going on in that head of his. At least she hadn't completely failed at knowing him as a best friend. She was positive that she was on to something, all though she would have to wait until her theories were confirmed.

In any case, she was glad to have Kurt back to his eccentric self; glad to have her friend's loveliness surface once more, and as she walked around the walls of the courtyard a melody came into her head.

_And I never thought I'd feel this way  
>And as far as I'm concerned<br>I'm glad I got the chance to say  
>That I do believe I love you<em>

_And if I should ever go away  
>Well, then close your eyes and try to feel<br>The way we do today  
>And then if you can remember<em>

_Keep smilin', keep shinin'  
>Knowin' you can always count on me, for sure<br>That's what friends are for  
>For good times and bad times<br>I'll be on your side forever more  
>That's what friends are for<em>

She skipped up onto one of the stone benches and carried on belting out the song.

_Well, you came and opened me  
>And now there's so much more I see<br>And so by the way I thank you_

_Whoa, and then for the times when we're apart  
>Well, then close your eyes and know<br>These words are comin' from my heart  
>And then if you can remember, oh<em>

_Keep smiling, keep shining  
>Knowing you can always count on me, for sure<br>That's what friends are for  
>In good times, in bad times<br>I'll be on your side forever more  
>Oh, that's what friends are for<em>

_Whoa... oh... oh...  
>keep smilin', keep shinin'<em>

_That's what friends are for_  
><em>For good times and bad times<em>  
><em>I'll be on your side forever more<em>  
><em>That's what friends are for<em>

_Keep smilin', keep shinin'  
>Knowin' you can always count on me, oh, for sure<br>'Cause I tell you that's what friends are for  
>For good times and for bad times<br>I'll be on your side forever more  
>That's what friends are for (That's what friends are for)<em>

_On me, for sure  
>That's what friends are for<br>Keep smilin', keep shinin'_

"Keep shining, Kurt." Mercedes whispered before heading back into the castle.

* * *

><p>Kurt sat by the window in the Owlery, scribbling down his letter of relief to his father. He had put Mercedes' annoyingly accurate assumptions out of his mind. He did not need to focus on that right now. He should think of the positives. Burt was better, he hadn't run into Karofsky, although that wasn't a guarantee the trouble had ended, and Finn's problems were sure to be resolved once he got over his nerves. His studies were getting back on track, also. He breathed out slowly, frowning. There was only one other slightly confusing issue to address. He couldn't be falling for someone again so soon, could he? Not after all the grief he had last year. This was unbelievable. Why did he allow himself to get swallowed so deep into these things? And now everyone knew…Oh lord. Well, perhaps an exaggeration, Mercedes had guessed, but the other two at least knew about their friendship. Kurt put his head in his hands and sat for a moment or two, flickering the sequence of recent events across his mind and contemplating his options.<p>

That was when he heard footsteps coming up the stairs.

Think of the devil and he shall appear it seemed. Although, Blaine could hardly be described as a devil…Angel, maybe…an infuriating Angel that wouldn't stop plaguing him with an irresistible smile and comforting eyes. There were worse things to be plagued by, he supposed.

"Hi there," Blaine said, a little surprised to see Kurt there, himself.

"Hey," Kurt said, smiling in spite of himself. Blaine returned it.

The two boys paused for a moment, and both became very aware of the steady heat rising in the room, which should be icily cold in the mid-March weather. Neither was sure of an appropriate place for their eyes to linger.

"I have decided something." Blaine told him, breaking the silence and smiling at Kurt with what seemed like gentile ease.

"What?" Kurt asked, heart hammering against his ribcage so that he was half-concerned that the bones may fracture.

"You're accident prone… well maybe not all accidents… just dangerous-incident prone." Blaine said, walking towards Kurt and taking a seat across from him as the moonlight streamed in through the open window and lit up his face beautifully. It made his skin adopt a faint blue-glow, which seemed to light up the backs of his eyes in an otherworldly manner.

"There were only two occasions," Kurt told him, struggling to keep a hold of his coherency. The hand and the window.

"Three: the Petrificus Totalus incident. It was only something that you _told _me about, but I reckon it still counts. And considering the few times we have actually had conversations, I would say that you're not making a very good running total for yourself."

"I can assure you that I am usually the height of grace and caution, you just caught me at bad moments," Kurt told him, the corners of his mouth turning up as he realised they were both leant towards each other. Somehow Blaine's sweet-tempered words made him feel a peaceful flurry sweep through him, making him relax, his shoulder muscles no longer tensing.

"Are you sure? You may fall out that window at any moment."

"I don't think so," Kurt laughed.

"Well, warn me if you do so that I can make sure to catch you beforehand," Blaine said off-handedly, but Kurt's stomach jumped at the thought of such an event. Not the falling part, the catching. The saving. "Hey, I'm sorry if your friends were a little taken aback by me earlier."

"Oh no, it's all right." Kurt said quickly.

"I think they may have been a little suspicious." Blaine chuckled.

_Only Mercedes, _Kurt thought. "What would they have to be suspicious of?"

He only just realised the flirtatious note to his question, but Blaine merely smiled and looked down making Kurt's eyes brighten with curiosity. Did Blaine feel that there was something to be suspicious of?

"So, any reason you are up here?" Blaine asked, changing the subject.

"Oh, just sending my Dad a letter." Kurt said, remembering the parchment in his hand and looking around for Pavarotti. The small bird seemed to read his thoughts as he swooped towards him, sticking out his leg and allowing Kurt to tie the letter.

Blaine held out a treat to the small bird who hooted happily. "Who's this fellow, then?"

"Pavarotti," Kurt told him and he looked amused by the name as the bird shot out of the window to deliver the message.

"Updating him on things?" Blaine guessed.

Kurt bit his lip, "Not exactly."

Blaine raised his eyebrows expectantly in interest, but did not ask directly. Kurt mulled it over but decided that he had told Blaine so much about himself already, there wasn't a lot of point keeping this a secret.

He told Blaine all about Burt and the events earlier that year that felt like a black cloud of memories.

Blaine sat back a little after the story and exhaled deeply. He shook his head; "I seriously don't understand how you cope with all of this stuff, Kurt."

Kurt tried to shrug casually, "It's not so bad. He's fine now and Karofsky hasn't hassled me in a while."

"Karofsky?" Blaine's face suddenly darkened. "That's who has been doing this to you?"

Oh shit. More slip-ups. He had never told Blaine the identity of who it was that had been provoking him all this time, and Blaine had never actually seen any of these events. He had always left Karofsky as an anonymous party, and Blaine had never pushed him to admit the culprit or Kurt's torment. What the hell was wrong with him lately? He needed to learn how to hold his tongue more adequately.

Blaine looked very solemn, "He's… Well, he's not a good guy. At all."

"You know him well?" Kurt guessed.

"Unfortunately… he was all right up until a year or so ago. But recently… He's in a lot of my classes and he just… Pisses me off. For a lot of reasons, but I think I know what you mean, he doesn't like me a hell of a lot either… Probably for similar reasons…"

"Does he…?" Kurt began, trailing off and just looking at his hand, which was now out of the bandage and looking much better.

"No, nothing like what he's done to you. I didn't think he was _that _bad but…Jesus." Blaine looked really agitated, staring down with a disconsolate expression on his face as he saw the injured hand, and Kurt felt a little alarmed.

"It's no big deal, honestly, I mean I literally haven't seen him for days now so maybe he's just decided to avoid me?"

"No, that's not the reason he hasn't been around," Blaine told Kurt gravely, looking saddened that Kurt had thought himself free of the bully.

"Then why hasn't he…?"

"He's been sent home for the past week or so, after punching his fist through a wall." Blaine said bluntly. He looked up and felt like he had been knocked sideways slightly as Kurt's wide eyes were now only inches away from his own. It was hard to pull himself out of his slight stupor from seeing those sublime irises so close.

He managed to regain his composure, however, returning to the grave subject of conversation:

"It was in my Transfigurations class. I don't know what happened he just lost it right after I answered a question… I don't even remember what it was that I said; the guy just flipped. It was insane. Anyway, McGonagall wasn't having any of it and suspended him for two weeks. He'll be back in a few days, though."  
>Kurt's heart filled with dread at this. So he hadn't been leaving him be, he simply had no alternative to since he had been sent away from the castle and it sounded as though his rage was only getting worse…<p>

Blaine touched Kurt's upper arm comfortingly, "Don't worry about it; I'm sure that when he's back he'll be watching himself because of what happened. I doubt he would be stupid enough to try and cause you any trouble."

Kurt tried to push aside the feelings he felt from the magnetic contact between them; "He's never had any difficulty with finding me on my own before."

Kurt felt sick to the stomach. He shouldn't have assumed that he was safe. He felt the colour drain out of his face at the thought of having to face the threatening Slytherin again, and he felt a light cold sweat break out over his forehead.

Blaine tightened his grip on Kurt's arm and shook him gently. "Kurt? Kurt, listen to me, you can't let that guy get to you, okay? I'll make sure he stays away from you."

Kurt just nodded, words refusing to form on his lips.

Blaine stood up and went to sit alongside Kurt on the bench. He wrapped an arm around the frightened boy next to him and held him tightly. "He's not going to be able to touch you."

Kurt hastily wiped away the incessant tears that rolled down his face and allowed himself to be embraced by the elder boy, feeling safe as he inhaled his warm and potent scent.

They sat like that for a long while until the Owlery was almost completely shrouded in darkness.

"Come on," Blaine said softly in the tiniest whisper so that he had to lean close to Kurt's ear, his breath tickling the tip of his skin pleasantly, but then he retracted his arm. "We should go back before Filch catches us up here."

Kurt nodded, making to get up as Blaine did the same.

Before they left Kurt stopped, "Wait, didn't you come up here to send a letter too?"

Blaine paused and then merely shook his head, "Don't worry, it's not important. Come on, let's go."

Kurt was not fully convinced of his friend's evasion but he decided that perhaps now was not the time to press for details, and so he let the matter drop and followed him down the steps.

* * *

><p>So, I realise that I have been uploading these at a fairly fast pace thus far, and maybe a few people are struggling to keep up and read them all. Just, don't rush, because the reason I am doing so is that I am going away on holiday this Wednesday for a week or so. I am sorry for the bad timing - perhaps I should have started this afterwards, but oh well, Glee keeps us in suspense all the time, so I am sure you are all used to it! That or have had just about enough of the anticipation so that it is driving you over the edge... Sorry! I will try and put up another chapter tomorrow - maybe two, it depends. Thank you to everyone who has read these so far, I am thrilled to have readers! :)<p> 


	6. Chapter 6: Quidditch

**Hello all,**

**So, this is the last chapter I am going to update before I go away on holiday. It is a long one so hopefully that will be enough for you to forgive me for a week of absence! I am sorry about that… again. There is plenty of drama here for you to occupy your minds with however, and hopefully enough so that you will want to carry on with the story even after being deprived for a little while! The good thing is that a week off may give me time to write some more, even though I have already got several chapters lined up for you all (which still need editing). I have my notebooks and pens packed and ready to go! Also, pity me a little; without the Internet I won't be able to keep up to date on anything Glee/Klaine/Darren/Chris/Starkid/ Harry Potter related. There better not be anything major that I miss! If I do then I am hoping someone shall inform me! Hmm, perhaps the break from my obsession will do me good! Still…**

**Anyway, enough about me - enjoy this update! 'Cos it is all you'll be getting for a good week or so!**

**And thank you again to everyone who has shown interest thus far – I am so happy! You are all Totally Awesome!**

* * *

><p><span>Chapter Six: Quidditch<span>

Songs: Crush – Jennifer Paige

* * *

><p>The four Gryffindors had decided to run down to Hogsmeade before going to the Quidditch match that evening. It had seemed pointless to attempt studying when the common room was a buzz with excited students talking loudly in gaggles and hoards about the game that was so soon approaching.<p>

Just as they were leaving through the Fat Lady's portrait however, a certain Gryffindor Chaser was outside, having just been about to speak the password and enter. He closed his mouth and grinned at them all, his features lit up with such exhilaration born from the upcoming game. Kurt had to force fake coughs to hide his choke of amazement at the sight of him.

"Going to see the game later?" Blaine asked once these had subsided.

"Well, obviously I am," Finn answered merrily. "These guys will be also, but we're heading down to Hogsmeade for a bit first."

"Well, so long as you're not late to the very important pre-match talk," Blaine told him in a mock-disciplinary tone, mimicking their captain's bossy tones.

"Yeah man, of course; I would _hate_ to miss that," Finn replied sarcastically.

"You could always come and join us?" Rachel offered politely and Kurt internally thanked her, having been too shy to ask Blaine himself.

Blaine's features arranged themselves into a look of disappointment; "If only I could, unfortunately I have to go and quickly finish my Ancient Runes paper that I have neglected until now," He grinned mischievously and put a finger over his lips ; "But shh, don't tell anyone that."

Mercedes glanced at Kurt as he focused on keeping his expression void of emotion. "That's a shame but don't worry, your secret is safe with us."

Blaine laughed; "Ahh, I knew I could count on you! Well, I'll see you all later then," He said, turning to Kurt for a moment. "Picked out a scarf yet?"

Kurt gave him a knowing look, "Only the best."

"I shall look forward to seeing that too then," Blaine winked, an action that almost completely obliterated the beating in Kurt's chest, before bidding them goodbye and entering the common room.

Mercedes stifled a laugh, glancing at Kurt who ignored this action.

"What's so funny?" Asked Finn, nonplussed.

"Nothing," Mercedes said, heavily implying that it was certainly not nothing.

* * *

><p>After having spent a good hour or so in Hogsmeade's Dominic Maestro's the foursome decided to go over to The Three Broomsticks for a much-needed Butterbeer; Finn had started to feel the nerves settle in.<p>

"Slytherin looked kinda formidable on the field the other day," He muttered as they sat down on a table at the back. "We snuck along to steal a glimpse at their practice and… Well, it's not looking good."

"Yeah but Slytherin fouls so much that you'll get a tonne of penalties." Mercedes pointed out optimistically.

"They have a new seeker though…"

"Who?"

Finn's face darkened quite alarmingly; "This Jesse St. James kid. He really riles me up. He's such an arrogant jerk."

Kurt looked curiously at his brother. He was very rarely so outspoken and harsh about anyone, let alone someone he barely seemed to know. It was very out of character for him.

"He's a Slytherin, what do you expect?" Mercedes said, shaking her head, not picking up on this unusual trait.

"Yeah, Finn, don't let it get to you," Rachel said warmly, putting a hand on his forearm. "I'm sure whoever this guy is, he won't be a match for us. You said that this is the best team Gryffindor has had in a while. You just need a little confidence."

"I guess so…" Finn said, hesitating and catching Rachel's supportive eye, "Yeah, yeah definitely. Of course we can win."  
>"Woo, go team!" Kurt attempted an enthusiastic cheer in a high-pitched note quite opposed to the voice you could expect from most sport chants. The others looked at him sceptically. He took another sip of Butterbeer grumbling, "What? I gave it a shot."<p>

Mercedes gave him a playful nudge and laughed. "Well, when we win we can have a good after-party in the common room and maybe we can all-" She gave Kurt a particular look "-hang out with the team and…congratulate them."

Kurt shot her a deadly glare, but the other two didn't seem to notice.

Finn was looking across the room at a pretty blonde girl who had just caught his eye and was smiling at him. Finn returned the gesture pleasantly, whereas Rachel looked as though she was about to pull daggers from beneath her beaver-embroidered sweater.

"Who are you looking at?" Asked Mercedes following their gazes. The girl stood between two others. One was the self-labelled "bitch" Santana who had insulted Rachel and Finn a couple weeks before and another was the blonde Hufflepuff who had confused Trelawney with her cat-talk. They were certainly known around Hogwarts generally as being three of the most attractive girls in attendance at the school.

"The two blonde girls are called Brittany and Quinn," Kurt supplied casually.

"How do you know them?" Rachel demanded, her eyes not leaving the pretty blonde's head that was now turned away from them, unless of course they were darting at Finn's own expression, which he now hid behind his beer glass.

Kurt rolled his eyes. "They're in our year you moron. Quinn is the Ravenclaw that I was paired with in Charms last year when we were learning Accio. She's very lovely; excellent fashion sense." He spoke this as though that settled the matter of her character.

"Hmm," Rachel grumbled, stealing another glance at Finn who refused to comment. "She looks a bit stuck up to me…"

"That's a bit judgemental Rachel," He replied, breaking his resolve and frowning down at her. "I know Quinn too and she's perfectly nice."

Rachel blanched at this comment. How long had he known her? Did he talk to her much? Her eyes darted back up to the three of them as she searched for a fault in the girl she so suddenly despised. "Oh come on, she hangs out with Santana!" She retorted in an angry whisper, however it was not quite quiet enough. The dark haired Slytherin looked over her shoulder at the sound of her name.

"Did you just say my name, Hobbit?" She demanded, turning around fully and striding up to the table. "Because if you were you had best tell me what it is you were saying before I go all Lima-Heights on your ass."

Mercedes leaned in towards Kurt, "…What does that even mean?"

He just shook his head as if to say that it wasn't even worth asking.

"I didn't say your name," Rachel lied quickly, "especially seeming as you won't even call me by mine."

"Santana? What are you doing?" Quinn and the other blonde girl had just noticed their friend's departure and looked a little wary as she stood before the four Gryffindors, hands on her slim hips.

She held up a finger to Quinn and kept her eyes fixed on Rachel, "I never had any desire to learn your name, as I am sure it could only be as irrelevant and boring as your Pippi Longstocking get-up, so I would appreciate it if you stayed out of my way."

"Santana, come on, Brittany and I want to get to the game, leave them be," Quinn told her softly.

"We're going to a game? I thought we were going to make a treasure hunt." Brittany said. Her two friends looked at her. "Quid ditch… isn't that where you hide English muggle money in the ground and make First Years search for it?"

Santana turned back to the four Gryffindors, Finn in particular. "You better hope that we don't win later or I'll be sticking your dwarf girlfriend onto a two-by-four and carrying her around as my trophy."

Finn flushed at the suggestion towards Rachel, who just sat fuming.

"Come on Santana," Quinn sighed, pulling her by the arm. Santana gave way, deciding that she had won this battle anyway. Quinn gave them all an apologetic look before heading out the door.

The four of them sat feeling a little nonplussed.

"That girl has a serious attitude problem," Rachel snarled, folding her arms and slumping back in her chair, jaw clenched.

"She's just a little over-dramatic. She isn't all bad," Mercedes said, rolling her eyes, as she knew exactly why Rachel was in such a foul mood.

"What?" Rachel demanded.

"You were being a little out of order, Rachel, you don't even know them that well," Finn said, angling his body away from the girl beside him, clearly unimpressed with her current demeanour.

"Finn, Santana insults us all the time for no reason!"

"Yeah, but she does that to everyone. She likes to be the bitch, but it only effects you if you rise to it," Finn said, rather maturely. "Besides, what you said about Quinn was a little uncalled for."

Rachel stood up angrily, "Well, why don't you just go run off and hang out with them then? You can forget about me helping with your History of Magic essay now! You're not the only one who can storm out dramatically, Finn! Let me show you how it's done."

Then she proceeded to stomp out in a rage. She slammed the door of the pub behind her and stalking quickly across the road leading back up to the castle, arms crossed tightly across her chest. As she walked she caught sight of the same three girls just entering Honeydukes, having not seen her. Rachel seethed.

Her thoughts flickered to Finn's face and she angrily tried to shake her head to remove the image. This was stupid. He was nothing, it was just some silly infatuation she had. It didn't mean anything.

_Ahh, crush, ahh_

_I see ya blowin' me a kiss_

_It doesn't take a scientist_

_To understand what's going on baby_

_If you see something in my eye  
>Let's not over analyse<em>

_Don't go too deep with it baby_

She looked around and saw them all getting up from the table in The  
>Three Broomsticks, about to come out and she quickly ducked behind the wall she had gotten up to as she watched them exit and pause for a moment, Kurt looking back at some unknown thing, before walking on.<p>

_So let it be what it'll be_

_Don't make a fuss and get crazy over you and me _

_Here's what I'll do _

_I'll play loose_

_Not like we have a date with destiny  
><em>

_It's just a little crush _

_Not like I faint every time we touch_

_It's just some little thing_

_Not like everything I do depends on you_

_Sha-la-la-la, Sha-la-la-la_

_It's raising my adrenaline _

_You're banging on a heart of tin_

_Please don't make too much of it baby _

_Say the word "forevermore" _

_That's not what I'm looking for _

_All I can commit to is "maybe" _

They passed her, but without seeing where she was, as she could just see them through a gap in the wall. She caught a glimpse of Finn as he walked looking a little down-trodden as he did so. She lowered her breath to a whisper as she continued.

_So let it be what it'll be _

_Don't make a fuss and get crazy over you and me_

_Here's what I'll do _

_I'll pay loose _

_Not like we have a date with destiny _

_It's just a little crush_

_Not like I faint every time we touch_

_It's just some little thing_

_Not like everything I do depends on you _

_Sha-la-la-la, Sha-la-la-la _

Then Rachel stood at the edge of the wall that they had now passed and watched his figure disappear into the distance, her heart aching ever so slightly.

* * *

><p>The others had glanced silently between themselves once Rachel had left. Kurt didn't really expect much less from the small brunette, Mercedes looked a little concerned but not wholly unsurprised and Finn looked half guilty and half irritated.<p>

They all silently decided that perhaps it was best that they made their way to the game.

As they left the pub however, Kurt turned his head to look down the street and could have sworn he saw a figure quickly turn the corner, behind one of the houses around the back of The Three Broomsticks. He blinked for a moment.

"Kurt, what are you gawping at?" Mercedes asked impatiently.

"Nothing…just thought I saw someone that's all." Kurt said, shaking his head.

"Probably just one of the residents of Hogsmeade Kurt, honestly, we have to get moving! Finn has to get back to Hogwarts."

"Right, yeah sorry, let's go." Kurt said, keeping his eye trained on the spot as they turned to go, but no shadow reappeared. Maybe he was just feeling a bit spooked. He had other things to concentrate on now… a certain Gryffindor Quidditch player, to be exact.

* * *

><p>The atmosphere in the stadium, as always, was complete pandemonium. Huge waves of red and gold seas and green and silver ones with yellow and blue dotted around haphazardly, shrinking in comparison. Kurt sporting his own deep crimson silk scarf lined with gold hem that wrapped around his neck, the soft material tickling his cheeks. The whole arena was lit up in the night setting, bright lights spreading across the pitch.<p>

Rachel had returned to them, since Finn was no longer there, and she had no real issue with Mercedes and Kurt. Well, other than…

"I can't believe you stuck up for that Quinn girl," She hissed.

Kurt rolled his eyes, "Although it may seem preposterous to you, pretty girls can also be nice Rachel, and just because you feel the need to be threatened by-"

"I am not threatened!" Rachel erupted.

"Of course you're not," Replied Kurt in a sarcastic and knowing tone. "Either way, I have never seen a reason to dislike Quinn, bar the company she keeps at times. Seriously, Rachel - and I know that you will protest - but if jealously is your motivation for disliking her-" He held up a finger as she opened her mouth to object; "Hypothetically, if it were, I wouldn't worry yourself; I am sure Quinn isn't interested in Finn and even if she were what is to say he would reciprocate her feelings?"

"Because she's beautiful," Rachel grumbled. "Not that I care, because I am _not _jealous! Sure, me and Finn may seem perfectly suited to each other at times, and our relationship is very much close and in sync, but that doesn't mean I like him that way."

Kurt gave Mercedes a look and they simultaneously rolled their eyes and turned their attention back to the pitch where the yells from the crowd had indicated that the teams had just come out.

"Woo! Go Finn!" Mercedes called loudly so that the tall figure beneath them looked up and waved happily. Rachel crossed her arms in defiance and Finn's eyes flitted from her to Kurt who just shook his head and made a sign, twirling his finger near his head, indicating that she was crazy.

His hand fell back down however, as he caught a glimpse of Blaine, already beginning to mount his broomstick with the rest of the players. He gave Kurt a quick grin, making Kurt feel light-headed, before having to turn his attention to Madame Hooch.

She barked several rules at them, ending on the usual word of caution to the Slytherins saying that she wanted a "Nice clean game".

As. If.

She blew her whistle and they all rose into the sky in the typical formation. She blew the whistle again, throwing the large red Quaffle up into the sky at the same time.

And so the game began.

One of the Slytherin Chasers instantly slammed into Blaine's side in order to catch the ball, making Kurt catch his breath. Blaine did not seem hurt however, merely slightly annoyed as he shot after the player in quick pursuit.

Mercedes nudged Kurt in the ribs for his over-reaction and he pressed down on her foot.

"Ouch!" She yelped. "Kurt, your boots are steel-capped!"

"Well, you would do well to remember that now, wouldn't you?" He said, raising an eyebrow at her. She scowled but turned her attention back to the game.

The Slytherin Chaser who had attempted to maim Blaine hurled the Quaffle towards the Gryffindor hoops, but Finn quickly dived to save the ball, hitting it back out across the pitch, where one of the female Gryffindor Chasers swooped to catch it.

Mercedes and Kurt cheered, but Rachel maintained her sulking.

"Oh come on Rachel, you still want Finn to do well, don't you?" Mercedes scolded her.

"No," She said bluntly.

"You _know_ he didn't mean to upset you, he cares about you a lot," Mercedes said with total sincerity.

Her face brightened at this statement.

"He does?"

Kurt looked exasperated. "Yes! Of course he does you idiot! Now come on!" he went round the back of her, taking both of her hands and making them clap together.

"Oh all right!" She said, giggling with Kurt and cheering. "Go Gryffindor!"

At that moment, despite an attempted tackle by Slytherin, the female Chaser threw the ball over their heads, landing in Blaine's arms who threw it up in the air a little, hitting it with the tail-end of his broom as it came down and shooting it through the centre hoop.

The Gryffindor's within the stadium erupted, roaring at the triumph, and Kurt jumped up, releasing Rachel's hands to clap his own together at an extremely fast pace.

* * *

><p>The game continued on, with both teams making even more spectacular goals and saves, as well as the Slytherins carrying out equally spectacular, but more horrifying, tackles on the Gryffindor team - making one of the Chasers almost fall of his broom at one point, having to cling on with one hand until his teammates flew over to help him back up.<p>

Hooch's whistle blew countless times for penalties. After a while, due to the large amount, Gryffindor led by 50 points.

"Have you seen the Snitch recently?" Rachel asked the others. They both shook their heads, not having seen the impossibly fast ball for a good 10 minutes of the match when it had flown right by their stand.

Suddenly a violent gust of wind hit them, catching the expanse of material that was Kurt's scarf and blowing it off from around his neck.

He tried to snatch it back but it blew away out of the stands. "Drat! Hold on guys, I'll be right back."

"Kurt, get it later! You might miss something!" Rachel said, her earlier disapproval having been taken over by her newly enraptured enthusiasm for the game… or fixation of all of Finn's saves, of which there had been many.

"Rachel, are you insane? That scarf is _Versace_!" He said in bewilderment at her foolishness. "I'll just be a moment."

"Well, hurry back!" Mercedes called as Kurt made his way down the steps behind them.

* * *

><p>Kurt got down to the grounds and looked across the darkened grass for his precious possession. How could he have been so careless? It was one of the only designer accessories he owned.<p>

He walked a little way out, the tall stands encircling the stadium high above him. He heard the shouts, cheers and boos come from the crowd, unable to see what it was they were responding to. He had to walk out a little way for his search, his eyes continuing to dart around anxiously.

He could see a streak of green or red every now and then, when a player flew particularly high out of the stadium.

He carried on desperately looking for the scarf, beginning to dread that he had lost it forever. The fact that the grounds were pitch black was not helping…

Suddenly his heart leapt when he saw it dangling from a small tree to his left, fluttering delicately in the soft breeze.

He put a hand to his heart, "Phew!" That had been a close call.

He rushed up to thankfully retrieve the scarf, ready to get back to the game so that he could wear it proudly and support Finn and Blaine. On seconds thought, maybe he should just keep a hold of it to prevent such a freak accident happening again.

His paced slowed.

_How come that gust of wind had occurred? _Hethought, brow furrowing in confusion. The air had been fairly stagnant and calm all day… and it only seemed to have hit the three of them. Nobody else appeared to have felt it.

Kurt's newly elated heart turned to ice and he felt a prickle of fear swim up the back of his spine as he stood just feet away from the treasured Versace accessory.

He could hear breathing behind him.

As if in a movie he turned around and time seemed to freeze, causing the action to slow by a serious degree.

Before he had managed to turn the full way around two hands slammed into the front of his shoulders, making him fall backwards. His foot twisted painfully beneath him as he went down, causing him to yell out before crashing into the ground, hearing the sickening crunch of bone.

When he looked up at the black night's sky he could make out Karofsky's great figure looming above him.

He scrambled backwards, wincing from the pain in his foot, trying to escape his shadow, but Karofsky swept down and grabbed Kurt's arm, pulling him back up to his feet with no independent action of his own.

"Why are you doing this?" Kurt heard himself say in panic, but it was as though he had left his body all together, floating up to some unknown realm of terror.

"You pushed me to this, Hummel!"

"H-How? I haven't done anything!" He yelped as the fist around his upper arm tightened, and he attempted to reduce all weight from his crushed ankle.

"I got suspended!" He snarled like a dog ripping at flesh.

"I had nothing to do with that! I wasn't even there!" Kurt insisted, trying to squirm away from his grip.

"Yeah well, it was still your fault. Why are you doing this to me?" He demanded.

"Doing what?" Kurt gasped as tears began to rise in his eyes. "I told you I haven't _done _anything!"

"Shut up!" Karofsky shut his eyes tight. "It's not what you're doing, it's what you're doing _to me _you stupid-"

Kurt couldn't understand what he was saying. It didn't make any sense. Doing what to him? What did that mean? "Get off me!"

"Why do you have to just…always be around? Why can't you just go away?" He growled.

"I'm not the one who cornered me down here!" Kurt protested, trying to use his other hand to reach for his wand in the back pocket of his robes to no avail as the Slytherin caught his wrist. "Ouch! Let go! _You_ brought me down here!"

"You won't tell anyone about this!" He yelled.

"About what?" Kurt said, eyes now streaming with tears of pain and fear.

"If you tell anyone… I will kill you."

Kurt looked up into Karofsky's eyes, his own wide as a chill ran through him, striking his bones. He did not know what Karofsky was about to do, but he was sure he did not want to find out. Remembering something from earlier that night he brought up his foot suddenly, he gritted his teeth and put all of his weight on the injured foot, kicking the other steel-capped boot directly into Karofsky's shin with all the force his small frame could muster.

Karofsky howled and fell back, releasing Kurt as he did so, who had also let out an ear-splitting scream as his knees buckled from having to stand on the injured limb.

The countertenor clutched his arm to his chest and turned; snatching the scarf from the tree by scrambling on his knees, he managed to hop up on one leg, thinking of how he could run back to the castle or anywhere fast enough.

"No!" The voice behind him bellowed.

He turned sharply, just in time to see Karofsky's wand pointed squarely between his eyes.

"_Hey_!"

A new voice sounded loudly behind the pair from a distance. I was filled with rage.

Kurt could not turn his head in time before the addition to the fray bellowed; "_Expelliarmus_!"

Karofsky's wand flew abruptly out of his hands and suddenly a red blur swooped between the two of them, knocking the huge boy flat on his back.

Kurt stumbled backwards himself, but before his body could hit the floor a pair of arms caught him and pulled him back up to his feet, or foot as it were.

Blaine then turned and rounded on the now disarmed Karofsky. He pointed his wand at the Slytherin's heart and said in a low voice, oozing with animosity and struggling to stay calm:  
>"Take your wand and go back to the castle before I hex you back to wherever the hell you came from."<p>

Kurt hurriedly pulled out his own wand, holding himself up on the tree with one arm, pointing the other at Karofsky before he got any ideas.

The Slytherin glared angrily between the two boys for a moment, so that Blaine stepped forward in threat, still shielding Kurt.

Karofsky made a noise of anger before swiping his wand from the ground and getting to his feet. He gave Kurt one last curious look before leaving. It didn't seem angry anymore… It seemed sort of… sad.

But in the next moment he had disappeared behind one of the walls.

Blaine was breathing heavily and lowered his wand, turning back to face the boy behind him.

"Are you okay?" His voice quaked as he asked the question.

Kurt noticed that Blaine's face was ghostly white, although startled by this he imagined that his was just the same, as he nodded in reply.

"Here, sit down," Blaine said hastily, rushing to Kurt's side and helping him ease onto the floor so that he no longer had to put any pressure on his once again injured limbs.

"Lumos," He whispered, as he tried to examine Kurt's disfigured foot. Blaine grimaced. "I think it may be broken… I would try a spell, but I don't trust myself not to make it worse…"

"It's fine," Kurt assured him. Then he smiled to himself for a moment. "I guess you were right about me being accident prone."

"Dangerous –incident," Blaine corrected him in a hoarse voice as he looked up at Kurt wearily, still obviously shaken by what the incident had been.

For a moment the two of them merely stared at each other, both of their minds processing on the sequence of events that they had just been through, and memorising the features and expressions of the other boy's face before them, illuminated by the moonlight.

The 5th Year finally forced himself to look away from those spellbinding features, and glanced to the side of him only to see that a broomstick lay in the grass there.

He jerked his head up at the stadium where, at that very moment, the final whistle blew in a high pitch that sent a shock through both boys.

Blaine didn't look up as they heard the announcement:

"SLYTHERIN SEEKER CATCHES THE SNITCH! SLYTHERIN WINS!"

Blaine licked his dry lips as Kurt turned back to face him. He looked as though he had just had all of the air sucked out of him, but somehow he still managed to look at Kurt with a small smile and chuckled lightly.

"I have a feeling I may have a few angry Gryffindors to deal with when I get back."


	7. Chapter 7: Plotting

Hello readers!

I hope that you have managed to forgive me for the week's absence. I literally got home two hours ago and got in to edit this chapter and post it on here because I felt too cruel in depriving you all for any longer! I have not slept in over 30 hours, so I hope it is worth it! Just in case you're wondering: my parents are at work and my sister is asleep, so I haven't been heartless in ignoring them! I apologise if there are any mistakes that my sleep-deprived state may have missed, but I love the ending of this chapter. I hope that you will too, and I suspect you will if you have enjoyed it thus far... or just like Klaine sweetness... and if you don't then you may have picked the wrong genre of fan-fiction!

I have written sooooo much more while on holiday. Of course, I am writing about 20 chapters ahead of what I am posting, but I am staggering it because I want to be sure the structure holds up and that I am not forced to rush through my writing in order to bring you updates. Stay tuned, as I shall probably update again today, since I feel too mean for the lack of additions to the story this week!

Thank you again to everyone who has shown an interest, and to any new readers who see this! Love to you all!

* * *

><p><span>Chapter Seven: Plotting.<span>

"Put your hand on the bannister and put the rest of your weight on me," Blaine instructed in a soft voice.

They had managed to make it through most of the castle with Blaine supporting Kurt, who could not walk on his hurt foot. They had shrunk back before setting off for the castle, allowing the crowd from the Quidditch match to flock past them. Blaine had wanted to avoid his team, although realistically he knew it was stupid to do so, since they'd all be waiting for him in the common room when they finally got there.

"Okay, I'll try," Kurt said through gritted teeth, the difficultly being that his right arm was also injured from Karofsky's constricting hold, and he found it hard to grip the bannister. The right side of him was not doing well today, it seemed.

"Grip it with the other hand on the left side, that one's okay now… isn't it?" Blaine asked, remembering that it had been the one that Karofsky had injured beforehand, and feeling slightly sick at thinking of all the ways he had maimed Kurt thus far.

"Yeah, it's fine," Kurt assured him, not regarding the thought so favourably himself.

"Right, well, put your right arm around my shoulders, it won't hurt there," Blaine said, quickly switching to support Kurt's right side, the side on which he had the injured foot, causing his body to press almost completely against Blaine's side as he helped him carefully up the stairway.

Even though his present circumstance should have been mortifying, he couldn't help but feel a deep thrill run through him, his stomach contracting delightedly as he and the older boy were squeezed so tightly together, so that Kurt could feel every curve of his body, every patch of warm skin through his Quidditch uniform.

"Where is everybody else?" Kurt asked, feeling quite breathless, but determined to find something to alter the inappropriate route his thoughts were taking.

The place seemed deserted.

"Waiting, I guess," Blaine muttered ominously, swallowing as he looked up at the Fat Lady's portrait.

After a long while they finally made it up the stairs and they both paused once outside the Gryffindor Common Room.

"You know you weren't the seeker; it wasn't your fault they lost," Kurt said, attempting to comfort the boy that was propping him up. In spite of himself, he couldn't help but notice the toned muscles of Blaine's firm torso. _Friends, Kurt, you are friends_, he told himself sternly.

"They all saw me leave the stadium though, they all yelled after me, wondering where the hell I was going," Blaine grimaced, apparently unaware of the inner torments of the boy at his side.

Kurt turned his head to give him a sympathetic smile, "You'll have to face them some time… may as well be now. Courage, remember?"

Blaine broke into a grin despite his anxiety and took a deep breath, "You're right. Yes. Okay... Thestrals."

The portrait swung open, admitting them entrance.

* * *

><p>As the two had expected, the entire Gryffindor team had been there waiting for them.<p>

Well, for Blaine. They were most likely intent on berating him to no end once they had set eyes on him.

When they first saw their Chaser's face one of the team opened her mouth with the clear intent to begin an angry statement, but then all eyes flitted onto Kurt… To his frame slumped against the 6th Year and his limp foot dangling limply by his side.

Finn was the first to react, "Dude, what the hell? What _happened_?"

He jumped forward to help Kurt on the other side as the Quidditch team quickly parted ways through the middle, allowing Finn and Blaine to support him over to a nearby seat.

Mercedes and Rachel, who had been sitting near the back of the room, suddenly got to their feet and ran over to their battered friend, instantly beginning to fuss.

"Oh my gosh! Kurt, what… Where did you go to?" Mercedes asked, eyes widening in concern.

"What happened?" Rachel demanded, rounding on Blaine, hands on hips.

"Pipe down, Rachel, it isn't his fault for Christ's sake," Kurt snapped, wanting her to back off the older Gryffindor.

"You tell us, then," She said, looking to him suddenly.

"Man you're bossy," He whispered in annoyance, fingers reaching up to his temples. He was exhausted.

"Kurt you're hurt! You have to tell us what's going on." Mercedes said sounding frightened.

"Yeah, come on man; does this have anything to do with how you've been acting recently?" Finn asked, sitting next to his brother, sounding much calmer than the two girls, yet still clearly vexed by the sight of him. Kurt was thankful that he had at least one friend that hadn't been sent into wild hysterics.

"I think you should tell them, Kurt," Blaine said. He turned around to the other Gryffindor team players that were gathered around. "Guys, I am so sorry for what happened earlier, and I will make it up to you all, I promise, but do you mind giving these guys a little privacy?"

They didn't even seem to be irritated with Blaine, merely nodded still looking a little startled by Kurt's condition as they all moved away to the other end of the common room and some of them went up to their dormitories, in order to give them their space.

Blaine made to move away as well, not sure if it was his place to invade, but Kurt's head jerked up in a flash. "No, stay. Please?"

He wasn't about to reject such a sweet request from those sapphire eyes. Blaine returned and crouched down next to where Kurt sat, wanting more than anything to hold him, but feeling that the countertenor may have been opposed to such an action in the presence of his friends.

He probably wouldn't have complained that much…

"Kurt?" Rachel said insistently.

"All right, enough, I'm going to tell you," Kurt barked. He took a deep breath. "Sorry, sorry… Right…You have to promise to let me finish explaining before you kick off, okay?"

"Why?" Mercedes asked automatically, causing Kurt's jaw to tense slightly but he inhaled deeply, keeping in mind that this must be distressing for them.

"Please… Please, will you just promise to let me say it all? If you want to be told you have to promise me this."

He laid out his terms simply.

They glanced at each other, not liking the foreboding sound of these words but then they turned back and nodded.

* * *

><p>"Idunnsheewhayyhafftschtacheer" Kurt tried to say through the thermometer Madame Pomfrey had shoved in his mouth.<p>

"Excuse me?" Finn chuckled.

He yanked the thing out of his mouth, "I don't see why I have to stay here." He said again; "I feel fine."

She thrust the thermometer back into his mouth with a defiant glare, which he returned sulkily.

"Because you may catch a fever from the potions they had to give you to mend your arm and ankle." Finn told him, all though Kurt already knew this information, since Madame Pomfrey had told him so 17 times already that morning.

The woman in question took the thermometer and examined it.

"I don't get why they give you something to cure one thing that will then damage you in another way." Kurt muttered darkly, folding his arms tightly across his chest. He hated hospitals, even if they were the tiny wing like this one. They supplied him with miserable memories that he would rather forget entirely and his whole body screamed to be free from his medical confines.

"Well, we can cure a fever easily, we just need to see if you have one," Madame Pomfrey said huffily, having had enough of him as much as he had of this place.

"And you have to go to class," Kurt reminded Finn, looking at him sternly, as though he had suddenly become the parent or carer, even though it was him laid on a hospital bed.

"No way, man, I'm staying. Besides… Burt would kill me if I weren't here."

"No he wouldn't; he and Carole would kill you if you failed your exams because you're being an overprotective-"

"You're fine." Madame Pomfrey interjected quickly. "You can go within the next half an hour."

"Why do I have to wait another half an hour?" Kurt asked exasperated, proving so by his voice reaching an extremely high pitch.

"You don't. That was a joke."

"Some pretty black humour you've got there…" He grunted, giving her a most disagreeable glare.

She sighed and walked away from his bed, smiling slightly once her back was turned.

As soon as she had done so, Kurt swung his legs around to the side of the bed and stood up, feeling good to be back on his feet again. Immobility certainly did not suit his personality, or fashion sense for that matter.

"Hey, take it easy." Finn said, getting up and rushing to his side.

Kurt rolled his eyes, swatted his hand away and walked over to the cupboard that held his clothes. "Honestly Finn, will you cut it out! They don't call it magic for nothing."

He looked back over his shoulder just in time to catch sight of Finn's disheartened expression as his dismissal.

Kurt chewed the inside of his cheek, feeling bad. It had been a tough few days for Finn after the realisation of what had been going on with his newly instated brother.

"Sorry…" Kurt said, trying to rectify his bad attitude. "I do really appreciate you being here, Finn. It… It means a lot."

His face relaxed into a more joyous expression and Kurt was suddenly overwhelmingly thankful to have the boy before him as his brother.

Then he turned around holding up two waistcoats. "Now should I wear purple or green?"

Finn looked like a deer caught in headlights.

Perhaps Kurt had expected too much after his rush of gratitude, he clicked his tongue and turned back away, mumbling, "Don't know why I bother…"

* * *

><p>Other than their initial reactions of outrage, shock and horror, his three friends seemed to have mostly settled down about the Karofsky issue since he had told them. They hadn't mentioned it to him for the couple of days he had been at the hospital wing. Once he was back in classes, they seemed to stay off the subject for a little while, however he knew they would not be able to bite their tongues on the topic for long.<p>

This was confirmed when they were out in the grounds for Hagrid's Care of Magical Creatures lesson.

Mercedes picked the awkward time of when he had just wrestled a Bowtruckle into its cage to pounce on him about the unpleasant subject.

"You should go to Dumbledore about it." She told him frankly.

"No," He replied automatically, desperately trying to fasten the latch before it escaped again. "I shouldn't."

"Kurt, this guy is _seriously_ bullying you." She protested, astonished at his unwillingness to take action. "I'm not even sure that term is a strong enough word to describe it! You should tell one of the professors or Dumbledore or your Dad or-"

Kurt straightened up, breathing heavily from the previous energy he had just exerted.

"Listen, Mercedes, I don't want to get teachers involved in this and if you tell my Dad…So help me god I will never forgive you; he doesn't need any stress right now."

"_You_ should tell him, Kurt." Mercedes said, standing her ground, hands on hips as she squared up to him, her feisty character not about to back down.

Kurt crossed his arms. "It's my decision."

Mercedes bit her lip, "I know it is…and I'm not going to go behind your back Kurt… Or I don't want to, because I think you should be the one to tell them. But if you're not willing…"

"No, Mercedes!" Kurt said fiercely.

How many times would he have to tell her?

"What, so you're just going to creep around here in constant fear of what this guy might do to you? No way Kurt, what if next time Blaine or someone else isn't around? What are you going to do when there is no one there? What if he does something _worse_?"

She seemed to shudder at the thought.

The fire of questions did send a sense of dread through her friend but he shook his head; "Look, Mercedes, I know I have been sort of…difficult recently. I also know that I have taken a lot of that out on you and now I look back on that I realise that I was out of order. You are only ever looking out for me, with my best interests at heart, and I get that - I really do. You're my best friend and you know me better than anyone…" He relaxed his arms and stepped forward slightly, widening his eyes pleadingly as he tried to convince her; "I just hope that you can trust me on this; I am asking you to give me a little bit of time. I just… I need to find something out first… before I report anything."

Mercedes looked up at him for a long moment. It was odd, he was still the same person he had always been; he never lost that, even when he was clearly disrupted in several areas of his life. He never lost sight of who he was and he could never be broken. But now she saw something else behind those eyes, a new brush of maturity that had taken over the irrational and erratic boy she had known for so long. It wasn't as though it had completely taken hold of him yet, but it was reaching in, she was slightly in awe of how much he had grown up in a matter of months.

"Thank you for saying that Kurt, and I'm not in any way upset with you now that I realise the situation. I don't totally understand why you didn't think you could come to me, but it isn't like I would ever hold that sort of thing against you. Of course I believe in your judgement, but…what is it that you need to find out?" Mercedes asked, straining to comprehend everything that was going on with her fellow Gryffindor.

Kurt closed his eyes, trying to remain patient, picturing the saddened look in Karofsky's eyes. "I can't say right now. I know you won't like that answer, but… just…don't tell anyone. Make sure the others don't either. Give me a bit of time."

Mercedes looked puzzled by her friend's odd request and was about to open her mouth to protest when Hagrid's giant dustbin lid-sized hand clamped down on Kurt's shoulder.

"A'right there, Kurt?" Bowtruckle didn't nip ya did 'e?" He asked, sounding concerned in his rough voice.

"No, I'm fine." Kurt assured him, looking up at his friendly face.

"I know you just got out the 'ospital last week an' I don't want you fallin' ill on us agen" He said seriously.

"No, thanks Hagrid, I'm just a little tired is all."

Hagrid nodded and clapped Kurt on the back, a little too hard so that the boy almost fell forward, but he didn't notice as such, and walked off to check on one of the other students.

Rachel came up to the two of them, "You okay?" She asked brightly.

Kurt nodded, then over her shoulder he saw that Finn was talking to Quinn, the pretty Ravenclaw girl who Rachel had taken such a disliking to. Kurt looked a little alarmed as Rachel was about to follow his gaze and he hastily kicked the Bowtruckle cage so that the door flung open. "Shoot!" He exclaimed loudly, wrenching her attention forwards once more. "It escaped!"

Rachel and Mercedes reached for their wands and rushed after the little guy. Kurt frowned as he watched Finn and Quinn talking.

This could only spell trouble.

* * *

><p>"What were you talking to Quinn about the other day?" Kurt asked as he and Finn walked down to the Quidditch pitch. Blaine had left Kurt a note outside their dormitory that morning, which Kurt still had tucked neatly into his breast pocket, and planned to keep hold of it for a long while (not that he was about to tell anyone that part):<p>

_Kurt,_

_We have Quidditch practice this evening; would you like to come along and then you and I could go to the library afterwards to study for a bit? I feel as though I haven't been able to see you much recently, and I want to make sure everything is okay. _

_Please say you will go, else you are sentencing me to a very dull evening of Transfigurations Theory, and you wouldn't want to do that to me now, would you?_

_Blaine._

Blaine asked Kurt to study a lot with him these days…

"What?" Finn asked.

Kurt had to collect himself in order to recall the question he had just asked his brother: "In Care of Magical Creatures? I had to let loose one of those little tree demons to stop Rachel seeing… I thought you liked her?"

Finn seemed a little taken aback my Kurt's tone. "I do… Quinn was just telling me that I did a really good job in the game against Slytherin and-"

"Do you want to be with Rachel or not?" Kurt cut across him, stepping forward to block Finn and coming to a halt, arms folded.

"What? Yeah, of course I do, look me and Quinn are friends and she-"

"Listen Finn, I don't know what is going on with you and Quinn or whether or not it is harmless as flies – which is a stupid expression as flies are vermin and far from harmless – but besides, you hanging around with her is only going to upset what you have with Rachel. Or what you want to have." Kurt told him assuredly at a quick pace.

"I don't get why Rachel gets so funny about these things…"

Kurt shrugged. "She's insecure. She's a teenage girl; it's like their right or something."

Finn frowned and looked down. "She doesn't have to be so rude about it, though, I really don't like that side of her."

"So…now you don't like Rachel?" Kurt asked, looking to one side in confusion, his brow furrowed, "Seriously, you have to make up your mind and tell me here."

"I never said I didn't like _her_, just not that part of her. Can we carry on; I'm going to be late here," He said, starting to walk again.

Kurt quickly fell into step with him once more. "Okay, well that's fine, you don't _have_ to like every side to her. Nobody is perfect, but I assure you, her caring so much about Quinn is only a good thing."

"It is?" Finn asked, befuddled.

"Absolutely, it means that she cares enough about whether or not you like her or else she wouldn't get so touchy about it." Kurt informed him, often having to spell out the way of girls to his brother, who was utterly clueless. It was a shame really; he had a far greater need to understand them than Kurt did.

"I guess…"

"I thought you two were going to sing together anyway? I've heard you, Finn, and you have an amazing voice. Honestly, this is me, and I wouldn't tell you so if you didn't. I won't tell you that it's as good as mine (when it isn't) but I assure you if you sing something to her, Rachel is going to melt like the Wicked Witch of the West, or Elphaba if you will." Kurt chuckled slightly, but Finn just gave him a gormless expression and so he decided to translate it into terms he would understand in flat monotone: "She'll like it."

Finn twisted uncomfortably as they approached the pitch. "I don't know; she hasn't spoken to me an awful lot about it lately."

"Hmmm," Kurt mused as the other Gryffindor players came into view, already flying through the sky on their brooms. "You know what you need?"

"What?"

"A grand gesture," Kurt told him cheerfully.

"What do you-" Yet before Finn could finish his question addressed to the flamboyant Gryffindor boy the rest of his team came swooping towards them.

"Come on, Hudson, get your behind in the air!" The seeker yelled at him, diving towards them, but pulling up short at the last second.

Kurt skipped to the side as the female Chaser did a ring around Finn, "You're not going to save anything from the ground, get your ass in gear!"

"They certainly seem to have a fixation on your rear end, don't they Finn?" Kurt smirked.

He ignored his brother, instead kicking his leg over the broomstick in his hand and shooting off into the sky.

Kurt watched him go until another familiar face zoomed down and hovered on his broom just in front of the countertenor.

"Hi there," said Blaine, a sweet smile creeping onto his features.  
>"Hello," Kurt said zealously, face lighting up, his heart beating just that little bit faster as he watched the delicate fluttering of Blaine's curls in the wind and the charmingly flirtatious glint in his eyes.<p>

"You accepted my invitation then?" He asked, letting go of the broom with his hands and sitting back, balancing with his feet crossed beneath the broomstick.

"Wouldn't miss it," Kurt assured him and he was almost certain that his heart skipped a beat when Blaine broke into a grin at that answer.

"Anderson!" A yell from behind them sounded.

"Oops, gotta go!" Blaine said, fastening his hands back onto the broom after having jumped slightly at the barked order and almost slipping off of it. "Talk to you in a bit, yeah? Make sure you get a good seat."

Kurt sat down by the stands and watched as the Quidditch practice progressed and slowly drew to a close. Something about the way that Blaine played, ducking and diving like a majestic bird in a flurry of crimson colour, made it much easier to admire the sport, all though he still didn't fully understand the rules.

The team eventually called it a day and literally came back down to earth to join Kurt.

Finn walked up to him first as Blaine had to put away the Quaffle.

"Grand gesture?" He asked instantly before anything else.

Kurt smiled wryly. "Been thinking about it all this time?"

"Yes," Finn replied, a little grumpy.

Kurt smiled and hopped off the seat he had taken and walked past his brother, "I haven't quite straightened out all the details just yet, but when I do you'll be the second to know."

"Second?" Finn asked, turning around to look at him, the unhappy expression still fixed on his features.

Blaine walked up beside Kurt who gave the 6th year a triumphant look, "Why yes, I have to clear it all with my partner in crime first."

"What am I doing?" Blaine asked blankly, feeling a little out of the loop as he looked between the two of them quizzically.

Kurt clasped his hands together behind his back and bounced on the balls of his feet, "We can't discuss it here, and Finn has to go back to the common room where I shall fill him later."

The Keeper opened his mouth for a moment but then caught Kurt's gleeful expression and decided that, whatever it was, he wasn't about to reveal it now, meaning Finn would have to leave his protests until later. He shut his mouth, tried to give his brother one last pleading look not to plan anything drastic, and then headed off towards the castle.

"What are you plotting?" Blaine asked slowly, looking a little apprehensive himself as he too noticed the devious glint in Kurt's eyes.

"We should get to the library before it gets dark," He said, ignoring the questions purposely as his voice flourished musically. "We both know that I don't have a lot of luck when it comes to hanging around here at night."

Blaine frowned a little, some scheme must definitely be working away inside that head of his to have him making jokes about Karofsky, who since their last meeting, had kept a great distance from Blaine, even staying quiet in class and making his escape as soon as the bell rung. He was curious about the Slytherin's actions, but as of yet had not been able to confront him, as he would have liked to. He was most definitely avoiding the both of them.

* * *

><p>In the library the two boys sat with their heads together in one of the back aisles. They had spent all of 10 minutes studying, but had now turned their attention to Kurt's master plans.<p>

"I suppose we could pull it off… if we get everyone else to agree to it." Blaine mused, his eyes drifting upwards in thought it over, before flitting back down to land on the boy next to him whose arm was gently pressed against his own, proving rather distracting. He internally slapped and checked himself. Confused by his own absurd reaction to such trivialities.

"I should think so - why would they object?"  
>"Well, it is a little unorthodox," Blaine told him.<p>

"Dumbledore allowed you and your friends to sing on Valentine's Day," Kurt reminded him, confident in his idea.

"That was kind of different though, I mean we would have to interrupt-"

"It would be wonderfully romantic though, wouldn't it?" Kurt said dreamily in a wistful voice, staring off into the distance.

Blaine watched his swept-away features and paused for a moment to admire them, now feeling a little caught up in it all himself for some reason he couldn't place... "Yes, I suppose that it would."

"Well it's decided then, do you think your friends would help out?" Kurt asked eagerly.

Blaine hesitated for a moment, those piercing eyes drilling into his soul once more, finally managing a quick nod in response. Kurt looked delighted and Blaine felt a little guilty; he really didn't know if the others would be on board, yet he had to try.

"So… what was the other thing you wanted to tell me?" Blaine asked after a moment.

Kurt's face fell for a second and Blaine felt his muscles tense a little. When Kurt's face turned downcast that way he had learnt that it usually meant one thing.

"Karofsky," Kurt confirmed; "I need to talk to him."

Blaine had an impulse to immediately reject the idea but he decided to hear him out, "What about?"

"I just… know I saw something else there the other week." Kurt said, looking a little frustrated and Blaine could tell he was trying to picture the Slytherin's face as he did so. Kurt had told Blaine about that, naturally, about how he felt he had seen something besides anger in those dark eyes, and although Blaine found it hard to believe himself, he trusted Kurt's judgement.

Blaine sat back, exhaling through his nose and looked at Kurt a little fearfully, "Do you want me to talk to him with you?"

"Yes," Kurt admitted instantly, however soon after saying so he shook his head sullenly; "But I can't. You can't be there because I don't think that he would tell me if you were. I think he was going to say it right before I kicked him, but obviously that just enraged him. I need to talk to him calmly… And on my own."

Blaine was in awe of the amount of strength Kurt had within him. "And if he…?"

"I'll have my wand at the ready this time," Kurt said, unwavering.

"Do you think this will work?" Blaine asked after a moment.

Kurt shrugged. "I have to try."

Blaine nodded slowly, mulling a thought over his head for a moment. He put his hand out over Kurt's own.

Kurt turned sharply at the contact, his eyes flicking down to their hands for a fraction of a second and then up to Blaine's eyes. This was not like the first time their hands had touched; which had been when Blaine had tended to his injury. That had been clinical and methodical, checking for broken bones. This was a warm and caring gesture. Yet it also felt like something more than that, to Kurt at least. Something magical. A magic that went beyond what was learnt in a classroom. A magic that could never be explained.

"I just don't want to see you get hurt again," Blaine whispered, his eyes shining in a way that told Kurt that he meant the words ardently.

Kurt bit his tongue and managed to laugh, although he was pretty sure it was just nervous laughter, "I don't really want to get hurt again either… but thank you. I will do my best to stay out of harms way."

Blaine nodded once and slowly took his hand off of Kurt's. "So… Transfigurations?"

Kurt forced a smile, in truth feeling quite saddened to feel the void on the back of his hand where Blaine's had just been.


	8. Chapter 8: First Kiss

Chapter Eight: First Kiss

Songs: Take Me Away – The Plain White T's (I will just say that if you don't know this band: look them up. This song, and all of the others. They are so amazing and if you like "Somewhere Only We Know" – which of course you do – then they have a song called "Let Me Take You There" which is just as stunning. Just, if you do one thing today asides reading this, which I assume is what you came here to do, look up this song and this band. I shall shut it now!)

* * *

><p>Blaine walked through the halls of Hogwarts the next day, reflecting on the events of the evening before. He had held his hand. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. How could he have been so…He was such a… It was just… Stupid.<p>

Great, even his thoughts were struggling to make any sort of comprehendible formation. He uttered a sigh in exasperation as he walked. What had gotten into him lately? He was acting crazy and he didn't eve understand why, or to what reason his actions delved from. His brain whirred as he tried to piece together parts of his own comprehension, failing miserably in completing the puzzle.

"What's up bud?" A pair of hands clamped down on his shoulders, causing him to jump right out of his skin.

"Jesus," He breathed, as his friend came into view.

"Wes actually, but I will also accept Jesus," He said, slinging an arm around Blaine's shoulders as they walked. "What are you sighing about?"

"Nothing," Blaine murmured, keeping his eyes trained on the feet that mindlessly led him forward.

"Oh that definitely sounds like something," Trent had now come up on the other side of the vocalist.

"What are you guys just springing out from the walls?"

"Boo!" David jumped out at him as they turned the corner, making Blaine pull up short in his surprise. He then proceeded to roll his eyes and carried on with the three of them in hot pursuit.

"You guys seriously need to find yourselves a hobby," He told them, irritated, all though in truth he was more annoyed with himself than them.

"Why would we do that when we have so much fun bugging you and your melancholia?" Wes asked, pretending to be seriously confused by his question, glancing at the others who shook their heads at their foolish friend.

"I- Forget it. I'm not in the mood," Blaine muttered, deciding not to protest the suggestion of his own melancholy. If that was what you called it. He couldn't even tell anymore.

"Lover's tiff?" David guessed.

Blaine shot him the filthiest look he could muster as he pushed open the doors that led into their History of Magic classroom, which they were early for, leading it to be empty, as not even Professor Bins had arrived.

"Oh my, he _is_ a touchy one this morning," Wes chuckled as Blaine dumped his bag under one of the desks, sitting down.

Trent rested his arms on the table-top, sitting his head on top of them, "You can talk to us."

"There's nothing to talk about," Blaine insisted casually, getting out his books and pretending now to be unbothered by their attempts to provoke him, hoping that this tact would prove more effective.

It didn't.

"You just keep telling yourself that, dearest," David said in a mocking and patronising tone, ruffling his curls that had been fixed in place so well prior to the disturbance.

Blaine scowled inwardly and moved away, but tried to not display it on his face.

"You know you still haven't formally introduced us to him," Wes said.

"Yeah, we're beginning to think you're ashamed of us," Trent added as though such an idea would be ludicrous.

"And what would give you that idea?" Blaine asked, trying to open his textbook and ignore them by scanning its contents, or looking as though he was at least.

Wes pulled it out of his hands. "You best be nice to us or we won't grant you that little favour you asked of us."

Blaine clicked his tongue, "Honestly, I ask you guys for one thing and you jump to all these conclusions."

It wasn't exactly the first time that his friends had paired him off with people he had met for all of five minutes. It certainly was not helping the muddle of his mind.

"Well you _are _doing it for him," David said.

"His step-brother." Blaine corrected automatically.

"It _does_ seem a little suspicious," Trent agreed, ignoring his friend's amendment. "Plus, you seem to have been hanging around with this guy an awful lot lately."

Blaine really felt like finding a hole in the ground, burying his head in it and remaining there for all eternity…Perhaps that was a little over-dramatic.

"You put the moves on him yet?" Wes cackled.

Blaine did not even want to answer that. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. But (when you thought about it) it was hardly putting the moves on really; it was a friendly gesture. It was completely innocent.

"Oh come on, you have to give us something," David persisted, all of them growing impatient of his silence.

"I told you there is nothing going on!" Blaine insisted more adamantly now. "Are you guys going to do what I asked of you or what? Because if not I can always get somebody else to do it."

"Who?" Trent asked. Blaine opened his mouth for a moment and then shut it promptly, as he didn't really have an answer to that.

"Relax," Wes said, as other students began filing into the classroom. "We weren't going to pull out really."

"Thank you," Blaine said relieved. They all sat down in their appropriate seats and he allowed himself to relax now that his interrogation seemed to have ceased.

But then Wes leaned over and whispered: "Because then we'd _never_ get to meet him."

_Ground; swallow me whole right now, please?_ Blaine thought to himself. He had never been more thankful to see Bins float through that back wall into the classroom before in his life…

* * *

><p>"Where's Finn?" Rachel asked, "Don't tell me he's going to start being late to every lesson as well now…"<p>

Kurt rolled his eyes; "He'll be here. Why are you so fussed, anyway?"

"I'm not," She replied a little too quickly. He wiggled his eyebrows at her and she glared at him; "If you don't shut up I'll perform an acne-inducing hex on you."

"You don't know how to do that…" He said, all though a little uncertainly so that he let her be.

Rachel gazed out of the window. They were up in the Astronomy tower so that she had a good view of the grounds below which were slowly having a shadow cast over them while night fell. As she stared out at the landscape something caught her attention in the bottom corner of her eye.

She looked down.

Finn was standing below, on the grass, near the outside entrance of the tower. And he was not alone. Quinn was stood with him.

They were stood in a tight embrace.

Rachel felt a strange wave run through her as she saw it, as though she was sailing on a boat that had just suddenly capsized, sending her hurtling into the sea. She pulled her eyes away.

What was he doing? What did that mean?

Her hand shot up in the air.

"What is it Miss Berry?" Asked Professor Sinistra.

"I feel a little sick, Professor… may I be excused?"

The other two looked at her curiously, since she had not mentioned feeling unwell only moments ago, and it was hardly a trait of Rachel's to keep quiet about anything, no matter how irrelevant.

Sinistra nodded curtly and Rachel grabbed her bag, feeling her head sway slightly as she stood up and she tore out of the room before the other two could utter a word in question of how she was or what she was doing.

She ran down the stone steps, feeling tears prickle her eyes, but she held them back fiercely; he would not be one to cause her to cry.

This was ridiculous.

She was running so fast down the steps and feeling so dizzy that she hardly even noticed the two figures ascending the stairwell.

Finn and Quinn stared at her as she ran by.

"Rachel, what-"

She did not hear the end of Finn's sentence however, as she darted past them both and into the fresh air, tears streaming down her face now as seeing them again, together, appeared to have been the last straw. The pit of her stomach twisted uncomfortably, causing her chest to constrict.

She had to take great gulps of air as she walked across the grounds, with no idea where it was she was going.

After what seemed like an age she ended up within the pumpkin patch, only realising so when she tripped over one of the giant vegetables rooted in the earth. She fell ungracefully to the damp ground and made no attempt to get up.

This was so stupid. She shouldn't care about Finn. Why should seeing him with Quinn bother her so? They weren't even doing anything too incriminating…

But it had been enough.

Why would they meet secretly? Why would they be hugging like that? It wasn't a normal friendly hug… it was meaningful.

And the two of them had never been that close before anyway. Sure, they had been on talking terms, which she had only recently discovered as it is, but nothing he had said before indicated that they knew each other that well. So why else would he be doing that unless he… Unless they…?

She couldn't help picturing the two of them together, having to put up with them wherever she went; into the Great Hall or a classroom or Hogsmeade.

She couldn't very well admit to Finn that it bothered her and yet the thought of even walking into a room with the two of them… holding each other's hands… or kissing or… She wasn't sure she could handle being in the same room as that…

_I know we just got here_

_but I think it's time to go_

_I didn't want to believe it but now I know_

_you know who just walked in_

_and he didn't come alone_

_I can't stand to see this get me home  
><em>

She stood up, the tears still running down her face, as the images of the pair of them wouldn't stop thundering across her mind.

_Take me away_

_I'm gonna hurt somebody_

_take me away right now_

_how could he say_

_he wanted more you better_

_take me away right now_

_I thought he was perfect_

_he thought I was perfect too_

_perfect until he found someone new_

_now I'm stuck here watching her_

_I can't take this abuse_

_what does this girl do _

_that I can't do?  
><em>

She pictured Quinn's beautiful face and gorgeous frame and she caught her own reflection in a puddle on the ground from when it had rained earlier that day. A distorted mirror image of her features stared back at her menacingly, filling her with misery.

_Take me away_

_I'm gonna hurt somebody_

_take me away right now_

_how could he say_

_he wanted more you better_

_take me away right now_

_Whoa!_

_Take me away_

_I'm gonna hurt somebody_

_take me away right now_

_how could he say_

_he wanted more you better_

_take me away right now_

_Take me away_

_take me away right now_

_how could he say_

_he wanted more you better_

_take me away right now_

_right now…_

She was breathing heavily after having allowed her emotional capacity to exhaust itself through the lyrics and vocals of the song. Her fists were clenched beside her as she stared across the darkening grounds. The blood red sky was hovering above her, causing her skin and the grass beneath her feet to glow crimson.

"Impressive," A voice sounded behind her.

She whipped around, only really used to hearing the compliments of others in her head during the aftermath of one of her performances.

A boy stood behind her, a tall and very good-looking boy, at that. His dark hair hung lazily by the sides of his face in a casual manner that still looked perfect, a thin scarf swept over his neck beneath his robes and his grey-blue eyes were looking at her with a strange intensity that she usually only noticed in herself.

He held out his hand with a smile on his face, which exuded the upmost confidence; "Hello Rachel, my name is Jesse St James."

* * *

><p>Kurt walked the boy's bathroom after a truly disgusting Herbology lesson. He rushed over to the sink to get the stink off of his hands. He had thought that arranging plants and flowers would be a fun way to spend an hour before he had come to Hogwarts, but it had never quite lived up to his expectations. He sighed as he wiped his hands on a towel.<p>

Suddenly, one of the cubicle doors behind him was kicked open fiercely, making him start.

A grinning dark haired boy stood triumphantly in the doorframe, hands on his hips as though imitating some kind of superhero.

"Hello Kurt, this is an ambush!" He declared with bravado as the other two doors crashed open simultaneously, revealing a tall black boy and a large brunette one who had toilet roll trailing from his shoe.

"Why couldn't we have done this in an empty classroom or something; this stuff gets everywhere," Trent whined, hopping around on one foot, trying to pull it off of his sole.

Kurt turned around, utterly stumped as to what the hell was going on.

"Because this entrance was far more dramatic," Wes proclaimed, still in his superhero character, he marched up to the startled Gryffindor and stuck out his hand grandly.

Kurt spied it warily.

"Don't worry; we weren't actually going to the toilet. We were waiting for you and hiding within them." Wes told him, as if this information was supposed to put him at ease.

"…How did you know I would be here?" Kurt asked.

"Magic," Wes said in a spooky voice.

"Well, not exactly… this seems a lot more impressive, but we've actually just petrified six other boys before you came in. You should have seen their faces… actually… they were a lot like yours," David told him, sidling up to stand beside his friend. Trent hurried to join them having separated himself from the toilet paper at long last.

Kurt shook his head, still not understanding. "I'm sorry… _Who_ are you?"

"You know who we are!" Wes said. "You saw us singing a month or so ago."

Finally it clicked into place. "Oh! You're Blaine's friends," Kurt said, feeling a little relieved that he knew who they were, although now he was seriously beginning to doubt Blaine's choice of company…

"Yeah," Trent chuckled, "I bet you're wondering why he is yet to introduce us."

"Especially when he has already enrolled us to perform all sorts of favours for you… All though I am sure he has done enough of his own favours for you already," Said David implicitly.

Wes elbowed him, "Ignore that guy, he isn't really part of the group, he just tags along to make up our racial diversity."

David scowled at him.

Kurt hesitated, "So…you're going to do the song for us?" He decided to dwell on the part of the conversation that made some kind of sense.

Trent nodded, "Of course we-"

Wes cut across him, an arm shooing out to hit him across the chest, "Not so fast! We need to put a few things straight first."

He folded his arms and glanced at the other two, who quickly followed suit, forming a small circle around the extremely perplexed countertenor. "What be your intentions with our Blaine?"

"Urr…Excuse me?" Kurt asked, looking from face to inquisitive face, utterly baffled.

What on earth had he gotten himself into?

"You heard. What is going on with you two?"

"If by 'going on' you mean the fact we are friends and happen to hang out with one another then…well, that pretty much says it all." Kurt answered them calmly.

Wes looked at his two friends, exasperated; "He's just as stubborn as Blaine is."

"Figures," David rolled his eyes.

"Yes…" Kurt said sarcastically, glancing to one side contemptuously. "If you'll excuse me, gentlemen, I really must get to lunch. Thank you for your… words… and I shall be fascinated to work with you on what I have planned for my brother Finn, but for now I _really_ must be going." He clapped his hands together as he spoke and quickly ducked beneath Trent's arm and headed towards the bathroom door.

"We'll be seeing you around, Mr Hummel!" Wes called, and just as he opened the door he heard Wes whisper to the others. "Why on earth do we not call Blaine, Mr Anderson? Think of all the Matrix-related jokes. Oh, am I going to have fun in Charms this afternoon…"

* * *

><p>Kurt escaped his supposed ambush, realising that it was still a little early for lunch. Still, he wasn't about to go back in there.<p>

Just as he turned the corner he caught sight of his first opportunity since the conversation the other day with Blaine; Karofsky was walking down the hallway in the opposite direction.

"Hey!" Kurt called out reflexively, not thinking about what reaction such an outburst would cause.

Karofsky looked around, and when his eyes settled on Kurt his face depicted a mixture of anger and…fear?

In any case, he fastened his pace and pushed a door open to his left, in an obvious attempt to escape as soon as possible.

Trying to put aside the weird thought that it was he, Kurt, chasing this now unwilling boy into a corner, he ran after him, not wanting to miss his chance to finally get the answers to the questions that spun around his head.

"Stop!" He called out; rushing through the door that Karofsky had just disappeared into as he did so.

He realised then that they were within the Trophy Room, glass surfaces gleaming and glinting in the low-lit room. Placards with inscriptions of treasured ex-students and their achievements scattered all around the two boys.

Karofsky was skulking at the back of the room; clearly trying to search for another exit other than the one Kurt had just entered from.

There was none however, and the tall Slytherin seemed deeply disturbed by the prospect of having to face the Gryffindor who was at least half his size.

"What do you want? I've been leaving you alone, aren't you satisfied?" He growled in a throaty voice, still menacing as ever, but with an edge of vulnerability now mixed into his countenance.

Kurt swallowed, not really thrilled about the idea of being within a darkened room with this guy either, but knowing that this had to be done. For closure.

"I want to talk to you."

"Jesus!" Karofsky exclaimed, darting his eyes to one side as his muscles tensed. "Could you at least stop acting like a little prissy girl for at least five minutes? I don't want to talk to you."

_Calm, Kurt, calm_. He reminded himself. "Look, I can't force you to talk to me but-"

"No, you're damn right you can't! Now get out of my way, mud blood."

Karofsky took a threatening step towards him but Kurt, admittedly with enormous difficulty, stood his ground and tried to ignore the insult.

"Hey, it isn't as though you didn't spend your whole time practically stalking me until now," Kurt said defiantly, "I think I am entitled to force you into having one conversation to know why that was."

"I did not stalk you," Karofsky said with a disgusted expression.

Kurt narrowed his eyes, "Oh yeah, then what were you doing lurking behind The Three Broomsticks on the day of the Quidditch game? Before you went and attacked me that is…"

"The Three Broomsticks? What are you on about? I wasn't even in Hogsmeade that day." Karofsky fixed Kurt with genuine bewilderment so that Kurt couldn't help but believe his words.

But then who had he seen by those houses when they exited the pub?

He shook his head, instructing himself to stay focused on the matter at hand.

"You don't fool me, you know; I know that you don't only feel anger and hatred. I know that there is something else." Kurt attempted to weed it out of the older boy, glancing behind him as the door slowly closed behind them both.

Karofsky looked up as well, appearing just as nervous about this, but then he glared down at Kurt intimidatingly; "Is that so?"

"Yes… I know that you're sad."

Something strange flickered across Karofsky's eyes, but it was gone so quickly that Kurt failed to distinguish it once more, just as he had done when he had escaped him and Blaine during the Quidditch match.

His hands balled into fists, large feet rooted into the ground. "No, I'm pretty sure I'm just mad at you flouncing around here like you're in a freaking ballet. I mean seriously, we know you're a gay little freak, but do you have to rub our noses in it all the time?"

"Okay seriously, what is your problem?" Kurt snapped, calm resolve fading fast. "This castle is pretty damn big, we're not even in the same year; you can easily avoid me if that is what you so wish, but you are the one who constantly seeks _me_ out."

Karofsky looked furious at these words; "Yeah, well maybe that's because I don't think you should act that way around anyone… it's wrong."

Kurt's jaw clenched as he felt his blood boil beneath his skin, which was rapidly turning whiter than usual, as he felt his hands tremble with rage. "You had best take that back, Karofsky." He said in a low whisper that rushed through his lips in the gentlest voice he could muster at that moment.

"No, why should I? I know I'm right. The way you act, what you are… it's weird. It's not natural. And you have to prance about like that, making it as obvious as possible to everyone of what you are."

If Kurt had not been so distracted by what Karofsky was saying and their hurtful implications, perhaps he would have better realised _how _he had said them. His conviction wavered and he seemed to be saying the hateful words as though they were not actually his own.

"It is _who _I am, not what I am." Kurt said in a vicious snarl that ripped from his throat. "You… You're just a great oaf who is simply afraid of how extraordinarily ordinary you are. You think you can roam around here and tell people how to be, how to act? No, because you're the one acting like a crazed Neanderthal-"

"Shut up, Hummel!" Karofsky said, trying to cut the small Gryffindor off, trying to stamp down his courage and strike fear back into that heart.

Yet it was no use, he had lit a fire under Kurt now, and he was not about to back down for anyone or anything.

"- You think you're better than me? Honestly," Kurt coughed a laugh angrily, "You're not; at least I'm not scared of who I am. I know it and, yeah, I'm not afraid to shout it out to the world. Why should I? Unlike you, who is clearly hiding under some ridiculous veil and disguise to try and pretend that your life isn't so pathetic and pitiful. Which, may I add, it most definitely must be, if you decide to spend your waking hours bent on making other people's lives utterly miserable! Just because you can't actually face up to yourself and the reality that _you_ live in."

"Don't push me, Hummel. I'm warning you…" Karofsky was very close to him now, breathing down on him, his own breath quaking, and Kurt saw his hand twitch next to his pocket.

"Do your worst, Karofsky. Do your freaking worst. I don't even care. Hex me, go on, do it; you can't cast the gay out of me in a spell anymore than I can jinx the ignoramus out of you!"

Suddenly, Karofsky took the hand that Kurt had assumed was twitching towards his wand, and grasped the side of his face. Before he knew what was happening, the Slytherin's lips were on his, kissing him fiercely.

Kurt automatically put his hands up to the boy's chest and shoved against it with all of his might to part from his tormentor.

Kurt took several paces back, knocking into the glass of one of the cabinets that stood behind him.

His eyes flew wide in utter shock. He felt paralysed for a moment, mind whizzing over what had just happened, hardly being able to believe it. Then something to the core of him felt rotten, turning over and causing him to feel physically sick.

He felt like he was going to cry.

Karofsky looked like the mirror of surprise and anguish. He took another step towards Kurt, but the countertenor drew his wand quick as a flash, his brain having not even connected the action to his body yet, and his animalistic instincts taking charge of his slight frame.

He kept the wand raised, however, pointing it squarely in between the Slytherin's eyes, feeling as though he could never again be prepared for what this guy would throw at him.

Karofsky's face screwed up in rage and distress as he slammed his fist against one of the glass cabinets, causing the glass to fracture. He gave Kurt one last enflamed look and then he stormed past him and out of the door, emitting only a low sound of frustration and despair as he did so.

It was only once the Trophy Room door had swung shut again that Kurt remembered how to breathe.

He looked to the broken cabinet, and then to the wand in his hand, and lifted it.

"Reparo," He whispered, although he could hardly feel any air in his lungs.

The glass sewed itself back together and Kurt looked curiously at one of the names beneath its surface.

He knew that it had some sort of significance, yet at that moment he could not disentangle his mind in order to piece together why…

He allowed the tears to fall across his cold cheeks now, feeling his quivering body slide down to the ground, his energy having evaporated, as one of his shaking hands rose to his mouth. He lightly bit into his knuckle, attempting to steady himself.

The knowing and rotting feeling in his stomach maintained, and now Kurt knew why; after all his fantasising and watching of romantic movies and dreamy musicals… that had been his first kiss.


	9. Chapter 9: Confused

Chapter Nine: Confused.

Kurt walked across to the Great Hall, still feeling a little dizzy, as he made his way to the lunch that he was now late for. Again.

He sighed as he pushed open the doors to the loud commotion that was the entirety of Hogwarts sitting down to eat together.

Thankfully, there were a lot of people moving around, so that his entrance went mostly unnoticed. He glanced over to the Slytherin table and noted that Karofsky was not in attendance. For that he was very grateful. He was not sure where to place what had just happened in his head, but seeing him now…Kurt was sure that would not help in the slightest.

He made his way down the Gryffindor table, relieved to see the two familiar faces of his friends. Two, because one of them was also apparently absent.

"Hey, have you been with Rachel? I haven't seen her since Herbology." Finn said instantly as Kurt sat down.

Kurt merely shook his head, almost certain that words would fail him right now anyway. He still felt a little sick and was afraid that opening his mouth would cause him to be so physically.

"Are you okay, Kurt; you look kind of pale?" Mercedes asked, leaning forward warily.

"Those plants in Herbology didn't make you ill, did they?" Finn asked, "Sprout says that they can often lead to nausea if you cut them the wrong way."

Kurt nodded and put up his thumb and forefinger so as to signal to them that he did indeed feel it a little bit ill, all though of course it was not because of the reasons they had just stated.

A hand clapped him on the shoulder at that moment and he looked up to see Blaine, who smiled at him warmly, sending a much more pleasant feeling coursing through Kurt's centre as he squeezed in beside him on the bench.

"Hello… are you okay?" He asked, obviously noticing the pale shade of Kurt's skin just as the other two had done.

"He's feeling a bit sick - from Herbology." Mercedes told Blaine.

"Oh…" Blaine looked at his friend, as Mercedes and Finn seemed to look up towards the back of the room at something.

Kurt looked back at the 6th grader, telling him through his eyes that plants had not been the reason for him feeling under the weather. Blaine's eyes darkened as he assumed the worst. He knew it had something to do with Karofsky, all though he could not have possibly predicted what had actually just occurred. He seemed to do a quick scan of his friend for injuries, but Kurt just shook his head infinitesimally, indicating that was not the problem.

Blaine seemed no more comforted by this fact.

Kurt glanced at the other two to see if they had noticed this silent exchange of information, but they weren't paying the two boys any attention. Their eyes were still focused on the back of the room. Mercedes' face was a picture of confusion, whereas Finn looked like he was about to punch something.

Kurt turned his head slowly to look in the direction that the other two were staring.

Two people had just entered in through the back doors. One of whom was their late-comer friend, but the other one, who was holding Rachel's hand, was the Slytherin Seeker who had beat Gryffindor in the last Quidditch game with his capture of the Snitch: Jesse St James.

Kurt's mouth fell open and Blaine, who had turned around also, brought his head back, an equal look of surprise on his face.

"Since when did that happen?"

"Since when did they even know each other?" Mercedes asked.

Kurt glanced up at his brother with a worried expression, as Finn watched Rachel take a seat away from them with Jesse. She looked up at Finn as she sat down and tried to make it seem as though she was uncaring of his eyes, although the exaggerated action of trying to be superior to it clearly showed that she cared a whole lot. However, very soon her and Jesse had put their heads together, ignoring everyone else.

Finn swallowed, and nobody spoke for a very long while.

"I guess the plans off then." He whispered hoarsely.

Kurt paused for a moment, chewing his lip in thought. "Not necessarily…"

Finn choked a laugh and spat; "Well she clearly isn't interested, is she?"

"What's going on?" Asked Mercedes, who had not been told of the plots the other three had formulated.

Kurt ignored her for the moment.

"You can still do it… maybe just with a slightly different song choice."

Finn's face seemed to crumple. He stood up. "I dunno, man… I gotta go."

"Finn I-"

But Finn had already started walking away, keeping his head down so that he did not have to look upon the newly formed couple any longer.

The three Gryffindors watched him go and then turned their attention back to one another.

"So…what's going on?" Mercedes asked forcefully.

Kurt looked at Blaine, still feeling emotionally defused from the earlier events of the day, and desperately wanting to talk to him about it.

Blaine quickly reached down squeezed Kurt's hand beneath the table in the tiniest gesture of comfort that spoke volumes, and he turned to Mercedes, quickly explaining the Fin-Rachel situation. Mercedes listened carefully, but as well as her curiosity having been stirred by the apparently dramatic relationship of her two close friends, the connection that she had just witnessed between her extroverted best friend and this new guy was another thing that captured her interest. She had not seen their hands touch beneath the table, but all she needed to see was the electric eye contact they shared to know that something was going on between them as well.

* * *

><p>Blaine sat back in his seat, closing his eyes as he tried to absorb the words that Kurt had just spoken. A few of the highlighted phrases were reverberating inside the walls of his mind.<p>

They were sitting in the Gryffindor Common Room. It was empty because both of them were supposed to be in classes, yet circumstances called for an uncharacteristic ditching episode for both parties.

Kurt was in no mood to attend a lesson where he could not concentrate and had a constant fear of hurling, although that particular feeling seemed to have now subsided. And Blaine could as sooner stay focused in a lesson when he knew Kurt was this troubled as he could if a Banshee were giving him a lecture on Ancient Runes.

Blaine opened his eyes again, having for the most part processed what Kurt had just told him. The 5th Years eyes were still on him, waiting expectantly and anxiously for his friend's reply.

"Well, that I… was not expecting to hear," He finally answered.

Kurt grimaced.

Blaine sat forward so that he and Kurt were mere inches apart from each other, huddled together in a back corner of the deserted room. "Are you feeling better now…about it all?"

Kurt nodded, "Yes… I think it was just the shock… and…" He waved his hand in an agitated manner.

"The first kiss thing," Blaine finished in a low voice, Kurt having told him about this in his retelling of the story.

Kurt nodded solemnly, feeling utterly embarrassed by his confession in so many ways, but this part in particular persisted to gnaw away at the pit of his stomach as he stared at his shoes.

"Kurt, first kisses aren't everything you know. You'll still have first kisses… Just with other people, but it will still be special." Blaine said in a comforting tone, trying to push irritating and confusing thoughts from his mind as he did so.

"I know, I know," Kurt said, really not wanting to fixate on that part in case he got too depressed. "I just… It seems like a big deal that's all. I'm being ridiculous."

"No, you're not," Blaine assured him. "I agree with you; it is a big deal, especially if _you _think that it is. Then it matters."

Kurt looked back up at him for a second, a question bubbling onto his lips before he could stop himself; "What was yours like?"

Blaine seemed a little taken aback by the question. "Oh erm, I dunno. Fine, I guess."

Kurt felt stupid and wished he hadn't asked. Perhaps it had been just as bad for Blaine, and though the pair had discussed many things, detailed romantic histories had not yet come up. He decided that perhaps it was too personal to ask, gathering from Blaine's reaction, and so he quickly changed tact; "What should I do now?"

Blaine seemed thankful for the alteration in conversation as well, "I don't know… I'm sorry, that advice isn't very helpful, but I'm not sure. He sounds to me like he is one seriously conflicted individual."

"Mmm…" Kurt mused.

"I mean the things he said to you… then to turn around and…" Blaine sighed and shook his head. "I don't think anyone could possibly describe what is going on in that guy's brain. I kind of pity him."

"Pity him? The things he said were vulgar!" Kurt interjected repugnantly.

"Oh, don't get me wrong, I hate him too for what he has said and done to you," He answered fiercely leaving Kurt in no doubt. "But I mean… For us, we've both always sort of known who we are, and our difficulty is how we managed to tell other people about it, which is bad enough as it is. Karofsky sounds as though he doesn't even fully know or understand who he is or what he wants, so that he can't even begin to contemplate conveying it to others. Hence why he then acts out so rashly. I doubt he meant those words completely, particularly when you look at his actions proceeding them."  
>Kurt considered this for a moment. He realised that perhaps Blaine's views on this were far more mature than his own. He had already decided to despise Karofsky for eternity for what had gone down, thinking that it was inexcusable. Yet listening to Blaine, he started to see it from the Slytherin's point of view…how mixed up he must have been feeling… how, technically, he had also just added to his confusions and infuriation.<p>

Kurt groaned and put his face in his hands. "You're right; I should have handled things so much better!"

"What do you mean?" Blaine asked, startled by Kurt's flipped reaction to his words.

"I mean, if he is going through all that as you say — which makes perfect sense — he has to be going crazy with so many different thoughts and feelings, and I just made that even worse."

"How?"

Kurt grimaced. "I basically just rejected him and then stuck a wand in his face when he tried to approach me afterwards."

Blaine hesitated. "Well… It wasn't your fault; I would have done the exact same thing in your position, as would anyone. You were expecting him to jinx you not…not kiss you." For some reason Blaine seemed to have a difficulty with saying that last part.

"Still, he probably _really_ hates me now," Kurt said. "And I don't blame him. I'm pretty much one hundred per cent certain that I am the only person he has shown even an ounce of this side of him to, and that's how I treated him."

"Hey," Blaine said, sliding over to put an arm around the distressed boy. "Don't beat yourself up over it, you weren't to have known. You were acting on impulse. You felt attacked; sure it wasn't a typical kind of attack, but it shook you. How could you possibly berate yourself for your treatment of him, when his treatment of you has been far more appalling? You cannot be blamed for reacting negatively to that."

"I'm sure he doesn't feel that way," Kurt said.

"He has done so many other unspeakable things to you that would lead to his expulsion if any of the teachers ever found out about it. Sure, emotional damage is often worse and the sort of thing that goes unpunished, but he has inflicted that upon you as well. How did he expect you to respond?"

Kurt just leant in towards Blaine, not being able to come up with answers anymore, and simply wanting to be held by the older boy. Blaine wrapped his arms tighter around his vulnerable friend, not unwilling to comply with this silent wish, and hoping that he would not feel how fast his heart was beating within his chest at that moment.

* * *

><p>"I'm confused, I thought you liked Finn?" Mercedes hissed at Rachel. The two of them had been the only ones who had actually bothered to turn up to Charms that afternoon.<p>

Mercedes knew that Kurt had gone off with Blaine somewhere for some unknown reason. She wasn't sure how it would be reason enough to skip class, but she decided not to ask, assuming they had their own private reasons. Lord knows where Finn had got to, at this moment she felt well and truly clueless as to what was going on with all of her supposed best friends.

"You assumed I liked Finn; I never said that myself," Rachel corrected her, "Silencio!"

The frog on their table tried to croak but no noise came out and Rachel smiled triumphantly. The general noise going on in the classroom because of the students failing to produce the charm meant that their conversation went on unheard.

Flitwick clapped his tiny hands together, "Very good, Miss Berry, 10 points to Gryffindor!"

Rachel beamed. Today was turning out to be a good morning, well asides from…

"Oh come on, you have practically been in love with him since our first year here." Mercedes scoffed.

"Okay, it has not been that long; I didn't even know him that well until third year… I didn't really know anyone that well till then…" Rachel muttered, she had not exactly been the most popular of girls, not that it ever bothered her too greatly.

They would all work for her someday.

"Anyway, I am with Jesse now."

"Since when? And _why_?" Mercedes demanded, looking disapproving in her choice of boyfriend.

"Since we met properly a few days ago, and because he appreciates me for who I am and for my talent."

"No, no, Miss Fabray, you must twirl your wand a little more." Flitwick's voice could be heard over the chirps, croaks and scuttles. He was at Quinn's table; she appeared to be struggling with the Charm that day. Rachel smirked but ducked her head so that her outspoken friend would not see.

"Right… So he heard you sing a couple of days ago and now you two are an item, is that it?" She asked sceptically.

"As hard as it may be to believe that it would be a good basis on which romance would grow, yes, that is how it happened. You can disregard it for that reason if you so wish Mercedes, but I know myself that I am not most guy's first choice for a girlfriend… I accept that about myself."

"You speak a lot of crap sometimes, Rachel. You're beautiful, whether you choose to see that or not, and any guy would be lucky to have you. I don't like that Jesse kid… I think he is bad news and that you can do better." Mercedes told her with all sincerity.

Rachel looked up at her a little guiltily. "That is very sweet of you to say, Mercedes, but…" Rachel looked unguarded for once, putting aside her usually confident and bossy demeanour, "I know that my chances of happiness are slim romantically, and I am not about to pass up the opportunity for love if it comes my way."

"And you think you can have that with him?" Mercedes asked, a note of disgust creeping into her voice.

"He may be a Slytherin, but he is not a bad guy and has a great eye and ear for artistic talent. We have things in common; I heard that was the first step to long-lasting relationships. Me and Finn never really had that."

"But Finn is sweet and caring towards you, isn't that important too?" Mercedes asked her quietly.

Rachel hesitated and bowed her head, "I will admit that if Finn had asked me to be with him over the long time in which we have been friends, I would have accepted, but he never did. Am I supposed to sit around until he is ready to be with me? I'm sorry, Mercedes, but I can't just wait around for him forever. He had his chance — if he was ever intent on taking it at all - and now that time has passed."

Mercedes bit her lip as she held back the secret information that Blaine had told her at lunch. She knew that she was not allowed to tell Rachel but she wanted to so badly.

The bell rang and Rachel picked up her bag, slinging it over her shoulder.

"I'm sorry if you wanted it to work out between me and Finn, Mercedes, but I think we just have to accept that it is never going to happen… It just wasn't meant to be."

Mercedes opened her mouth to protest, but Rachel stopped her.

"I have to go and meet Jesse now, I will see you later."

And with that the tiny brunette darted out into the hallway, leaving Mercedes torn between what was the right thing to do. She sighed and lifted her own bag from under the table. It would be nice to have all of her friends be chilled out and getting along for once. Wouldn't that be something?

* * *

><p>Kurt was sat up in his dormitory, cross-legged in the centre of his bed and staring out of the window. Finn had not yet appeared and so he was left alone with his thoughts.<p>

The Karofsky situation, although bizarre, unexpected and insane, was not what was rattling his brain at that moment. Sure, he still felt sort of guilty for how he had reacted; especially now he looked back on how Karofsky had not made it to the Great Hall for Lunch. Or Dinner. Or, according to Blaine, any afternoon classes. It seemed as though both he and his brother had gone AWOL. Although Kurt was concerned, he was far more worried about Finn and even though he sort of pitied Karofsky, he doubted that he would ever be able to fully forgive the boy who had reaped havoc on him for half of the year.

He sighed and lay back on his bed, staring at the ceiling.

No, that wasn't what was troubling him.

It was not the guy who had tormented him with fright and ended up showing him an unprecedented amount of affection all of a sudden. It was the guy who had been tormenting him with his own feelings of affection for him, and yet seemed to not return any of these feelings.

He had prayed that the small signals exchanged between them were some indication on Blaine's part that he thought of him as more than a friend, yet Kurt himself was unsure. He had done this with Finn, taken every hint that could be interpreted that way and escalated it in his mind. And look how that had turned out.

Blaine was so confusing. He was incredibly open about his views and was always there to support Kurt and to give advice and guidance. He listened intently to his every word, yet for some reason Kurt felt as though he knew very little about Blaine on a personal level, other than the stories about him being bullied.

He seemed to evade the more deep-rooted questions; they seemed to make him uncomfortable. Kurt couldn't help but be maddeningly curious as to why this was. What was Blaine hiding? If he was hiding anything at all, perhaps Kurt was merely being paranoid.

He frowned for a moment; he had told Blaine so many things about himself. Every detail of Karofsky, Finn, his Dad, and yet Blaine did not seem to return the favour. Kurt couldn't help feeling a little bit cheated. And it did seem a bit suspicious.

Why wouldn't Blaine talk to him about it? Perhaps he thought him too young to talk seriously on an emotional level… No, he never seemed to act like there was any kind of age difference between them. It was only a year. Besides, he doubted that Blaine would think of him as an unlikely candidate to understand personal issues.

Maybe that was it, though: maybe he spent so much of his time whining to Blaine about all of his own problems, that the vocalist felt awkward mentioning his…or just couldn't get a word in edgeways.

In a way, Kurt had always known he was selfish. Well, not in a way; he was and he knew it. He knew he could act superior at times and that he was, more often than not, out for himself. He hated to say it, but he and Rachel had that in common...

Perhaps he had been a little too self absorbed lately, and that was why he and Blaine's friendship seemed so one-sided. He felt like he would be willing for the spotlight not to be on himself for once when it came to Blaine, that he would actually like to be the one focusing on him, rather than being the one who was focused on.

It was funny; he'd never really felt like that about anyone before.

Kurt put his face into his pillow, wanting to scream into it. What the hell was wrong with him? He had to get a grip. This was beginning to get out of control. He couldn't allow himself to become this obsessive again, this dependent; it wasn't healthy.

"…Are you okay, dude?" Kurt whipped his head up to see Finn standing over him.

He sat up quickly. "Yeah, I'm fine. Where have you been?"

He stared at his brother.

"Around," Finn answered.

"Look, Finn I still think that you should-"

"I am." His brother answered before Kurt could finish.

"You are?"

"Yes. I have it all sorted." Finn told him, sitting down on his own bed.

"You do?" Asked Kurt incredulously. Is that where he had been all this time?

"Yup. Help me with Potions?" He said matter-of-factly, getting out his books.

Kurt stared at Finn for a moment. He didn't seem upset. He didn't seem happy. He just seemed…Okay. There wasn't really another word for it.

He looked up expectantly at Kurt when he didn't answer.

"Where have you been?"

"To see some people." Fin answered.

"Quinn?" Kurt asked.

"…She was one of them." Finn told him. Kurt gave him a scathing look. "Dude, it really isn't what you think."

"Uh-huh… Just, don't do anything like that…like use her… to get back at Rachel." Kurt warned.

"You know that I wouldn't do that," Finn said seriously.

Kurt paused, looking at Finn; he seemed to be answering honestly. Yet Kurt wasn't sure that meant it wasn't going to happen. Even so, he decided not to push it any further. Finn had had a long day.

"I'll go and get my books…"


	10. Chapter 10: Revelations

Hello readers!

So, I have been a getting a few more reviews from you all, and of course I reply to each one because I appreciate them so much! Please do not hesitate to add one, even if it is something negative - if you think that I am doing something horribly then please tell me so I can apologise and put it right! I hope that isn't the case, however, and I love that people are enjoying this story!

These were initially two shorter chapters, but I decided to be kind and merge them so that you had an extra long chapter to read! We're getting to the nitty gritty stuff now, as you will realise at the end of the chapter. My next chapter will be probably the most emotional one so far, including a song that makes me bawl whenever someone mentions it. I actually just watched a Klaine fan video that was set to it and yes, I welled up, I can't help it. I don't want to give away too many spoilers though, I hate that, we don't need any more Ryan Murphys do we? Let's all troll together. Wheeyyyy.

Thank you again! I feel like I say thank you so much, and that I should say something more... If only I could use a Tumblr gif right now... like the one where Santana is crying and saying she has so many feelings... that'd work. Of course, if you don't have a Tumblr account you'll just think I'm talking crazy! Oh well. By the way, who is going mental over Pottermore? I'm losing sleep. Why are you doing this to me? Does nobody appreciate my fragility when it comes to all things Potter and Glee? And Starkid... It's just cruel.

Must stop rambling. Happy reading!

Chapter Ten: Revelations

(Songs: Rick Springfield – Jesse's Girl

Katie Melua – Closest Thing To Crazy)

* * *

><p>"Seriously, Rachel, I knew you were always lacking in general taste and judgement, but this is a new low." Kurt said.<p>

They were discussing Jesse again while slowly making their way towards Defence Against the Dark Arts.

"Since when did everyone take such a specific interest in my love life?" Rachel snapped, getting a little fed up of the constant berating she had received at the hands of anyone who had an opinion about her new boyfriend.

"When did _you _consider Jesse St James an apt candidate to date?" Kurt asked; he and Mercedes obviously had their reasons for strongly opposing the match, not that they could detail this to Rachel, however.

"Listen, why can't you guys be happy for me?" She said, rounding on the pair of them once they had reached the top of the stairs. "You have no right to disregard Jesse as scum when you have never even talked to the guy, or even asked me one single question about him other than why on earth I would like him and what about Finn? What is up with you guys? Why can't you just give me a break?"

Mercedes and Kurt had stopped short at this sudden outburst. They exchanged dubious glances towards the other. Of course from Rachel's perspective they had been acting entirely unfairly about the situation.

"Sorry, Rachel," Mercedes was the first to confess. "We didn't mean to give you a hard time."

"We haven't given Jesse a fair chance, you're right." Kurt said, not really fully accepting this as truth himself, but deciding to take the tactic of appeasement. "I guess your attachment to him just came a little out of the blue."

Rachel could sense the false tones in their voices and knew that something else was afoot that they were not letting her in on. She didn't have a clue what that was though, and thought that she would play along in their niceties.

"Okay…well, good. You can meet him later if you want."

She turned on her heel and continued walking as Kurt and Mercedes wiped away the false smiles they had etched on their faces from the request, looking at each other in mutual agreement of knowing that was the last thing either of them wanted to do.

Just then Rachel rushed forward towards somebody in the mass of people crowding the hallway. She tugged the person by the arm and Mercedes and Kurt gave each other sorrowful expressions when they realised that she had a hold of Jesse and was dragging him forwards to meet them.

He smiled at them pleasantly and Rachel started her sentence of introduction: "Speak of the devil! Kurt, Mercedes, this is-"

She was cut off however.

Cut off as they heard a strange noise that seemed to be coming from the other end of the hallway.

It was a bass line.

An echoing lyric could be heard over the music.

_Jesse is a friend_

_Yeah I know he's been a good friend of mine  
><em>

"Oh God," Kurt whispered, looking to Mercedes half excited and half terrified of what he was hearing. Of all the songs. This was the one he had chosen…

_But lately something's changed that aint hard to define_

_Jesse's got himself a girl and I wanna make her mine.  
><em>

"Who the hell is that?" Rachel asked, glancing at the boy beside her whose brows were furrowed, glancing shiftily sideways due to his name being mentioned in the song. "Do you know about this?"

He shook his head, just as clueless as his new girlfriend.

The sound was fast approaching.

_And she's watching him with those eyes _

_And she's loving him with that body, I just know it_

_And he's holding her in his arms late, late at night  
><em>

Suddenly two of the doors swung open on each side of the hallway and three boys stepped out of them. Kurt instantly recognised them as Blaine's friends who had ambushed him the day before. Wes was holding a bass guitar that must have been magically amplified and David was making drumming motions with his wand, producing the beat. All three had donned pairs of sunglasses indoors as though they were trying to impersonate a rock star.

They all opened their mouths to join in as Finn ran forward through the crowd of people who parted instantly.

_You know I wish that I had Jesse's Girl!_

_I wish that I had Jesse's Girl!_

_Where can I find a woman like that?_

He had obviously used the Sonorous Charm on his voice as Kurt had suggested to him before. I suppose this answered what he had been doing during his disappearance yesterday. Kurt wasn't sure whether he was impressed or horrified as he watched Rachel and Jesse, both of whose faces were dumbfounded. Finn lowered his voice as he walked up slowly.

_I play along with the charade _

_There doesn't seem to be a reason to change_

_You know I feel so dirty when they start talking cute_

_I wanna tell her that I love her but the point is probably moot  
><em>

Finn walked up to Rachel and sang, a slight smile on his face before spinning away again. The guy could perform when he wanted to, you had to give him that.

_Cos she's watching him with those eyes_

_And she's loving him with that body, I just know it_

_And he's holding her in his arms late, late at night  
><em>

Kurt felt a tap on his shoulder, and he whirled his head round for a moment to see Blaine who had come to watch the spectacle. He raised his eyebrows and Kurt laughed as they both turned back to watch Finn. Everyone around seemed shocked by what was going on, but nobody stopped him. Not even the teachers. To their amazement, a few of the students were even beginning to clap. All though, that may have been because Trent had started them off.

_You know I wish that I had Jesse's Girl!_

_I wish that I had Jesse's Girl!_

_Where can I find a woman like that?_

_Like Jesse's Girl!_

_I wish that I had Jesse's Girl!  
><em>

Jesse had folded his arms at this point and was leaning casually against the wall, eyes looking between Finn and Rachel with an odd expression on his face. He seemed sort of annoyed and yet amused at the same time. Rachel, for once in her life, looked utterly speechless.

_Where can I find a woman_

_Where can I find a woman like that?  
><em>

Wes, David and Trent came up and stood around Finn and then he began to walk up to random people in the crowd as he sang the next few lines in question to them.

_And I'm looking in the mirror all the time _

_Wondering what she don't see in me?_

_I've been funny, I've been cool with the lines._

_Aint that the way love's supposed to be?  
><em>

Finn clapped his hands together above his head with the crowd for the next few beats and then Mercedes burst out laughing as Finn slid on his knees back over to where Rachel stood. She covered her mouth with her hand, staring at him wide-eyed.

_Tell me!_

_Where can I find a woman like that?  
><em>

He pointed at her and then got back up to his feet as he circled back around Wes who began his short solo.

_You know I wish that I had Jesse's Girl!_

_I wish that I had Jesse's Girl!_

_I want Jesse's Girl!_

_Where can I find a woman like that?_

_Like Jesse's Girl!_

_I wish that I had Jesse's Girl!_

_I want, I want Jesse's Girl! _

The music stopped and everyone seemed to simultaneously turn towards Rachel once their cheers and applause had died down. She glanced around, rooted to the spot, not even knowing how she was supposed to react. Kurt glanced at Blaine who grimaced in apprehension.

It was Jesse who stepped forward however; he stepped forward and clapped a few times. "That was very nice, Finn," He said. "You certainly don't like to beat around the bush with your intentions, do you?"

He put his arm around Rachel, who looked up at him and did not withdraw from his hold.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," Finn said in a flat monotone, having expelled the Sonorous Charm. He looked to Rachel, but she still seemed too stunned to speak.

"However, I feel that your general performance left much to be desired, and your cheap attempts to steal my "girl", as you so refer to her, from me while I am standing right here… Well, the whole practice did seem a little crass, if I may say so."

Finn's face twisted in anger.

"Then again, I suppose it is to be expected; I fully realise that Rachel is worthy of one making such a spectacle of themselves, which is why I don't plan on letting her go anytime soon, so long as she will still have me, that is."

He did not say the last part as a question, his confident bravado sure of himself as he looked down at the girl within his arm. Rachel had been looking at something behind Finn's shoulder for a short amount of time, her eyes having darkened a little. She looked up at Jesse then for a moment, and nodded.

Kurt and Mercedes' faces dropped with Finn's and Rachel turned back to him and said; "I'm sorry Finn, that was…great. But Jesse is right; I am with him now and for as far as I can see that isn't about to change. I would also suggest that next time you do not so openly make such a show of yourself in front of your new girlfriend. She looks a bit upset."

Finn jerked his head round.

Rachel had been looking behind him to Quinn, who had been watching from one of the doorways. She had tears in her eyes. She seemed startled at having been called out as everyone looked at her and she sank back into the classroom.

"Rachel, that's not-" Finn started but she cut him off.

"Save it, Finn. You made your decision and I have made mine." She looked up at Jesse. "Can we go?"

Jesse looked determinedly at Finn. "Of course."

And the pair walked off back down the hallway.

Everyone stood in silence for a moment, a few heated whispers picked up here and there. Wes, David and Trent all clapped Finn on the back as they walked by, needing to hurry to class.

Kurt walked up to his brother, a saddened expression on his face. "Finn, I-"

"Don't." Finn said, his voice sounding strained as he closed his eyes for a moment. "I need to… I'll see you later, okay?" And before Kurt could say another word he had walked off in the opposite direction.

Kurt turned back around to the other two.

There was a moment of silence.

"Well…that could have gone better." Mercedes said, the other two looked at her a little disapprovingly. "Well, it's true…"

Kurt patted her on the shoulder. He looked up at Blaine, "Are you free to study later?"

Blaine's eyes darted sideways suddenly. "Umm, I can't tonight: I have to go see Snape about a Potion's assignment." He said quickly.

"…In the evening?"

Blaine shrugged, not making eye contact. "It's Snape: when do his requests ever make sense? I guess he was busy today. Anyway, I have to get to class. See you later, hope Finn is okay when you next see him."

Then, just like that, he disappeared into the crowd.

Kurt stood with Mercedes, frowning slightly.

"You okay?" She asked, obviously having not noticed the curious nature of Blaine's exit. Kurt worried over whether he had said something to offend the Sixth Year, but he couldn't fathom what that would have been. He merely nodded and the pair continued down the hallway.

* * *

><p>Kurt found Finn lying on his bed and staring at the ceiling that evening, much like he himself had been the night before.<p>

"Hey," He whispered, shutting the door behind him as he went to stand by Finn's bed. "Is everything all right?"

Finn didn't answer orally, merely shook his head.

Kurt sat on the corner of his bed. "She'll come to her senses eventually."

"You think?" Finn scoffed.

"Yes, Rachel isn't stupid. Infuriating and easily blinded by foolishness, yes, but even she will see what a jerk that guy is. If today was anything to go by…"

Jesse's smarmy and smug personality shone through him like a beacon that nobody could miss. "I mean Rachel had always been a bit conceited herself, but he was on a whole other level."

"You have no idea." Finn said darkly.

Kurt's brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"Nothing… I'm going to bed."

He rolled over, putting an arm across his face, clearly not in the mood for talking right at that moment.

Kurt felt a little offended, but he could relate all the same; the whole situation had become totally ridiculous and had gotten completely out of hand. He felt bad for Finn, but he wasn't going to waste his breath where his words weren't wanted.

He got up and headed back over to his side of the room, taking off his robes so that he only wore the cashmere cardigan and white jeans he had underneath.

He hesitated a moment.

"It was a great song. You sang it really well. I was impressed." He told his brother.

"Thanks man," He heard the muffled reply, Kurt gathered from it that Finn didn't take these words as a great comfort…

* * *

><p>Finn sat in an empty classroom; he had magically locked the door so as not to be disturbed. He was angry with himself. Angry, because for some reason he had gotten it into his dumb head that the song would actually work. He had had this ridiculous vision of Rachel pushing Jesse away to run into his arms, causing a magical moment where everything settled into perfection. Yet that hadn't happened. Not even close. She had walked off with him; arm in arm and from the looks of things it was going to stay that way.<p>

He had not spoken to her since yesterday when she had left him standing in that hallway, heartbroken and humiliated. He wasn't altogether sure if Kurt and Mercedes had spoken to her either; he hadn't really talked to them much. He wasn't sure if he wanted to scream, cry or punch something. All seemed like viable options, but none of them had yet been carried out.

He just sat, or lay, or stood, or walked. Feeling utterly hopeless. Feeling utterly useless. What was he supposed to do now? He knew there had been a life before Rachel, and yet now that he tried to think of how that had been… the thought just left him cold inside.

"Are your classes not in attendance at present, Mr Hudson?" A whisper sounded from behind him.

Finn's heart leapt up into his throat as he shot round suddenly, looking back at the classroom that he had previously thought to have been empty.

An old wizard stood behind the Quidditch Keeper. He fixed him with a soft smile, which reached up and touched the kind and wise eyes behind his half-moon spectacles. His white beard was so long that the end was tucked into his belt and he wore long purple robes, which seemed to flutter with a slight ethereal quality. He had his hands clasped behind his back as he viewed the heart-stricken boy before him.

"P-Professor Dumbledore…" Finn stuttered. Was he in for it now; "I-"

Dumbledore held up a hand calmly, to try and reassure Finn. "Don't worry, I am not angry with you. I am not about to discipline you for skipping class; in all honesty if I had the option between facing Blast-Ended Screwts or spending a minute alone with my thoughts, I knew which one I would pick."

Finn wrung his hands a little nervously, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet. Although Dumbledore was clearly trying to be friendly with him he couldn't help but be a little unnerved by the Headmaster's presence or his apparent knowledge of his timetable.

"Sorry, Professor, but… If you're not here to punish me then why…"

Dumbledore chuckled slightly, "I merely wanted to commend you on your excellent, although slightly unprecedented, performance yesterday."

Finn blanched at this answer. He had been there? "I didn't see-"

"I don't need objects such as invisibility cloaks to make myself invisible."

Finn felt like he would like to die right there on the spot: humiliation in front of the entire school was bad enough, but Dumbledore…

"I take it that you are still upset about the aftermath of that performance betwixt you and Miss Berry?" Dumbledore enquired.

How did he always manage to know exactly what was plaguing his thoughts? "Sort of…"

Dumbledore nodded. "True love burns the brightest but the brightest flames leave the deepest scars."

Finn nodded, not completely understanding what it was Dumbledore was getting at.

"I was wondering if, perhaps, you would do me a small favour?" Dumbledore asked.

"Err…Sure?" Finn said apprehensively, forgetting for a moment who it was that he was talking to. "I mean, of course, Professor."

"I would like you to perform in the Great Hall for me at the end of the year. You saw Mr Anderson and his friends sing on Valentine's Day I presume?" Finn was in slight shock by the request but nodded all the same. "Well, I think it would be nice to make it a little tradition. I have always thought that music is a magic beyond all that we do here, it would be nice to begin to honour it, and be able to show some of the talent that I have seen around these hallowed halls over the past couple of months."

"Err, okay, I guess I can figure out something…" Finn said, not sure what the hell he would do. He wasn't sure if he could bring himself to sing in front of everyone again after what had happened.

"You need not do it until after your examinations have concluded," Dumbledore told him. "Yet I shall be awaiting to hear it with great anticipation – all though, do not let that alarm you."

It alarmed him.

Dumbledore walked towards the door, unlocking it with a flick of his wand. He turned back to Finn just before he left; "I shall allow you to return to your pensive state, Mr Hudson… Oh, and do ask Miss Jones and Mr Hummel to contribute to this musical exhibit; I would hate to see their voices being silenced because I had not formally invited them myself. Miss Berry would be welcome to join you also, although I will not force your hand to invite her on account of recent events. Farewell."

He closed the door behind him, leaving Finn staring at the mahogany with his mouth slightly opened, processing what had just happened… totally flabbergasted.

* * *

><p>Rachel sat by herself on the fourth floor corridor the next day. Class was in session but she had skipped out saying that she needed the loo. Then she had just found herself…sitting.<p>

Rachel wrapped her hands around her knees and hugged them tightly to her chest. She did not cry. She didn't even feel like crying. She just felt… Bizarre. Her head swam with different thoughts and feelings that she could hardly distinguish between, bashing into one another, creating sparring matches as they met in the middle of her skull and behind her sternum. Her lungs seemed unable to fill with air properly and she closed her eyes slowly, attempting to get a hold on herself.

This was madness. She was with Jesse. She had made her choice. He had been nothing but lovely to her, she knew he could be a bit rude and arrogant at times, but it wasn't unlike her own character. He was not afraid to speak his mind, but he had been so attentive to her. He made her feel special. He made her feel noticed, like she was the centre of the universe. Maybe it was her being selfish, but she liked this. She liked his drama; it matched hers. Everything fit. Everything made sense. Right? He was perfect for her, surely?

Then why was he not the only boy taking up the capacity of her mind? Why was there another intruding into what should have been a perfect couple's portrait?

That song… That voice… She had not been expecting that. Not even a little bit. She had not been able to look Finn in the eye since. She had only seen him briefly in the common room that morning, and occasionally in the corridor. She had avoided them all after what had happened. She had sat quietly on her own desk in classes. Kurt had come over to talk to her in Transfigurations, but she had been mostly unresponsive. Rachel knew what they thought of Jesse and their relationship, it was clear now that they were supporting Finn and that she had unsettled that.

His song had been so… open. He had laid everything out on the page so literally for all to see. Not just her, but the whole school. She hadn't had a clue of the strength of his feelings. That he had reciprocated… But then why had he not done so beforehand? She had decided and it was too late now. She was committed and she wasn't about to back out of that. Jesse had been plain from their first conversation and she had loved the straightforward intent, as though he couldn't help but want to be with her right away. That had never been the way with Finn. He had been infuriating, constantly keeping her guessing and waiting and convulsing as she tried to figure out what there was between the two of them. And then when she had finally come to the conclusion that there was nothing, he had turned around and decided to proclaim his feelings to the world. She could not pin her hopes on someone so unreliable. There was nothing about Jesse he did not show to her in all clarity. And she was still insistent that something was going on between Quinn and Finn; two people didn't act that way about each other in such a short space of time without reason. Plus, her crying must confirm it.

Rachel groaned and put her head in her hands: why was she obsessing over this? It was driving her insane. Perhaps she was more addicted to drama than she had first thought…

_How can I think I'm standing strong,_

_Yet feel the air beneath my feet?_

_How can happiness feel so wrong?_

_How can misery feel so sweet?_

_How can you let me watch you sleep,_

_Then break my dreams the way you do?_

_How can I have got in so deep?_

_Why did I fall in love with you?_

Rachel got to her feet and softly glided down the empty hallway as she sang, trailing her fingertips along the side of the wall and drifting over the soft material of the drapes.

_This is the closest thing to crazy_

_I have ever been._

_Feeling twenty-two, acting seventeen._

_This is the nearest thing to crazy_

_I have ever known._

_But I was never crazy on my own._

_And now I know_

_That there's a link between the two,_

_Being close to craziness, and being close to you_

She pictured both of them, dancing around her mind and refusing to exit the stage. They both struggled for the spotlight in her thoughts and she ran a hand through her hair as she fought to push them both out of her mind.

_How can you let me fall apart?_

_Then break my fall with lovign lies._

_It's so easy to break a heart,_

_It's so easy to close your eyes._

_How can you treat me like a child?_

_Yet like a child I yearn for you._

_How can anyone feel so wild?_

_How can anyone feel so blue?_

_[Chorus]_

_This is the closest thing to crazy_

_I have ever been._

_Feeling twenty-two, acting seventeen._

_This is the nearest thing to crazy_

_I have ever known._

_I was never crazy on my own._

_And now I know_

_That there's a link between the two,_

_Being close to craziness, and being close to you_

_And being close to you_

_And being close to you_

Jesse was her boyfriend, and she wasn't about to change that if she could help it. She had chosen him and she was going to stick by this. Yet she had loved Finn for a long time now, whether being willing to admit it to herself or not and, try as she might, she had not chosen to sink into such infatuation, and nor would she be able to change it even if she had wanted to…

* * *

><p>The summer weather had begun to spread across Hogwarts like a warm blanket, lighting up the castle and uplifting the atmosphere and attitudes of the wide majority of its students.<p>

Kurt and Blaine had decided to take full advantage of such an occasion, both skipping out of their last classes of the day early in order to meet by the lake. Not the small alcove where Blaine had heard Kurt sing, but out in the open space, next to the water where the surrounding ground was half sandy – the closest to a beach the enchanted school could provide.

Kurt sat with his legs crossed on one of the rocks nearby, his hands propping up his chin delicately as he watched Blaine.

The older boy had rolled up the ends of his school trousers and stood shin-deep in the cool water due to the heat of the day. He had discarded his heavy black robes as Kurt had done but, unlike his younger friend, he wore the appropriate white school shirt. Blaine had undone the top couple of buttons and as Kurt looked – feeling as though he was stealing shameful glances that he should be guilty of — he was loosening the tie which had been restricting his throat, allowing him to breathe in the fresh air and meaning that the top part of his chest was just visible below his neck, collarbones sculpted in smooth lines to the tips of his shoulders. Blaine reached out his arms to his sides and arched his back in a stretch. He bent low to splash water in his face and then turned round to Kurt, who had to instantly rearrange his features to make his blatant gawp at the beautiful creature before him disappear.

"It is positively boiling out here! I could hardly concentrate all the way through Divination; I wanted to leap out of the open window." He laughed and Kurt could hardly concentrate himself, but his reason was that the small diamond droplets that fell from Blaine's curls were ridiculously distracting. As was the way the sunlight lit up the features of his face, making them shine radiantly, and causing his eyes to positively glow like embers of a fire as he grinned.

Blaine cocked his head to one side as he watched Kurt's face, which instantly looked down at the ground, and he cursed himself for being totally moronic.

"So, are you excited about getting to sing?" Blaine asked, Kurt had told him instantly about Finn's meeting with Dumbledore and his request for them all to perform.

"Shocked and nervous initially, but yes very excited. I literally cannot wait. I was thinking of sleeping throughout the next couple of months or so in order for it to come sooner!" Kurt said, rocking back and forth delightedly as he mused the upcoming event. "I just don't understand how Dumbledore even knew I sang…"

Blaine waved his hand airily, "It's Dumbledore: he always finds a way, and you do make a habit of singing in open spaces, remember? Anyway, you have no need to be nervous, you'll be sensational - I guarantee it."

Kurt smirked and Blaine balanced on a rock beneath the water's surface, tottering slightly so that Kurt was afraid he might fall in, but he managed to steady himself and winked in triumph.

"I only meant that I was a _little _bit nervous," Kurt said, slightly abashed by this admittance of weakness.

"I bet," Blaine said playfully. Then he straightened up and looked at Kurt with deep-rooted affection born through his irises. "Actually, I think it's kind of adorable."

Kurt really did have to make an effort to avert his gaze then, and definitely had trouble conjuring up a response to that as electric pulses drove their way across his heart at rapid speed.

Blaine watched him curiously for a moment, wondering why the younger boy had turned away from him so, perhaps that last comment had been a bit over-board. "You'll do great."

"I thought I was going to be sensational, and now I have been demoted to just great?" Kurt asked, chirping up in order to deliver his mock-astounded question to the Sixth Year.

"My apologies, Kurt," Blaine grinned from ear to ear; "You shall be the most sensational and splendid singer Hogwarts has ever had or shall ever have grace its halls."

He wasn't even exaggerating that much.

Kurt hummed happily, carrying on being a spectator as Blaine jumped off of the rock and splashed the water around him so that it speckled his clothes – apparently the condition of his uniform was presently of little concern to the usually pristinely dressed vocalist.

"Why don't you come in the water? It's amazing."

"And risk getting these trousers wet, I don't think so!" Kurt said as if Blaine had completely lost his mind in suggesting such a thing.

Blaine held up his hands in a light-hearted defensive pose, "All right, calm down!" He chuckled and then stuck his tongue out to one side of his mouth. "You know, one day, I will get you in the water without any cares for your garments and fashion principles."

Kurt raised an eyebrow in utter disbelief. "Good luck with that. Seriously."

"It will happen." Blaine beamed confidently as he waded out of the lake, "Probably should get out soon anyway; I don't want to disturb the Giant Squid." Kurt wrinkled his nose at the prospect and Blaine walked back towards him, settling himself on one of the rocks opposite Kurt who had to swivel around to face the 6th Year – a view which he was by no means opposed to move to observe.

Kurt had to administer discipline, however, now was not a time to get swept away by idle fantasies.

"Blaine…"

"Uh-oh, I don't like the sound of that tone…" Blaine said trying to make a joke, but then he caught sight of Kurt's face. The countertenor bit his lip and looked down at his hands. "What's up?"

"I wanted to ask you something?" Blaine leant forward intently. "Well… On the day that Karofsky… You know, in the trophy room?" Blaine nodded, unsure where this was going, but always filling with dread when it came to that topic of conversation. "After he left… I saw something on one of the inscriptions on the trophies… One of the names."

Blaine's face seemed to freeze and suddenly darken despite the sun's best efforts to allow his features to continue to shine with the brilliance they had been thus far.

Kurt read from this a confirmation of what he had assumed, yet he asked his question all the same. "…Who is Nathan Anderson?"

Blaine looked as though all of the colour had suddenly drained from his face, his eyes darted anxiously around, as though he wanted to escape, and be anywhere but this conversation. Kurt had not expected so drastic a reaction from his friend, he had thought Blaine had been hiding something, but the look on the boy's face was desperately sad and crushed.

Kurt leant forward and put his hand over Blaine's. He did not move. "Blaine?" Kurt whispered. "I won't make you, but you know that you can tell me anything… in absolute confidence."

Blaine finally allowed his eyes to fix back upon Kurt's and he could see the pain behind them as they started to flood with tears. However, Blaine would not allow to actually roll down his face, and held them back with force.

Kurt waited; he was not going to push this.

After a while Blaine seemed to be able to collect himself slightly. "Nathan…" He let out a shuddering gasp. "Nathan is… was… my brother."

"Blaine… Is he the boy that disappeared from the Hogwarts Express?" Kurt asked in a low whisper.

Blaine couldn't seem to bare to look at Kurt any longer, he looked to the side, eyes stretching far across the lake and breathed; "Yes. Five years ago. He got on the train… and never got off."

* * *

><p>If you ask me what will happen in the next chapter before I post it, I shall respond in the words of Brad and Ian for every other Comic Con question: You'll have to tune in!<p>

Night!


	11. Chapter 11: Broken

Chapter Eleven: Broken

- This chapter is for anyone who has suffered any kind of loss in their life, whether it was a death of a person or a relationship. This chapter is for anyone who has ever been driven to a dark place that they thought they could never return from. This chapter is also for all of those people who managed to overcome that, because it is one of the hardest things to do. This chapter is for anyone who helped their friends through such times. If anyone is still struggling with such difficulties, then I wish you all the luck in the world to find your feet again. Thank you. -

(Songs: I will put the song title and band at the end of this chapter. But I don't want to give it away here. You'll all know it anyway, so I am only really putting it there for arguments sake. I just don't want to ruin the desired effect by saying it now.)

* * *

><p>The sky had begun to fall, making the grounds of Hogwarts have a shadow cast across it. Night was slowly trying to crawl in and invade the school, but it was not yet time to meet for dinner in the Great Hall, and other students occasionally crossed the grass nearby where the two boys sat, oblivious to their presence.<p>

They huddled together beneath one of the rocks, sitting on the ground with their backs leant against the stone. Blaine's head was now resting against Kurt's shoulder, a posture that before this time had only ever been adopted in a reversed role.

Kurt had listened for a long while to Blaine talking of his brother. It had taken him a long time to be able to speak of it. He had never tried to talk about it with anyone before; Wes, David and Trent all knew of the event naturally, but Blaine had shut off every time the topic of conversation, and they eventually gave up trying, at a loss for what to do.

It had not been easy for him to confess it to Kurt either. He didn't cry; he had merely spoken in flat monotone, mostly staring at his hands or feet or out across the lake, whose waters had calmed and silenced, apart from the gentle lapping against the shore that set the rhythm of the boy's conversation.

Kurt could see how detached Blaine had made himself; he refused to go into great detail, just stating the facts about what had happened.

Kurt had been processing the information for some time; he had lost his mother a long time ago, but it had been straightforward in a way. He knew how she had died, when it had happened and why. Nathan's disappearance was inconclusive. Nobody understood how it had happened. Even his friends didn't even realise at first, figuring he'd gone to find others on the train. He had been a very popular Hogwarts student, and had even been on Prefect duty that night, so his wandering around the carriages, and therefore going missing for long periods of time, was nothing out of the ordinary. It was only when Blaine and his family stood and waited for him to arrive on Platform 9 and ¾, that they realised he was not there to meet them.

It had been investigated thoroughly, and it had sent fear throughout Hogwarts. It was almost unheard of for students to be in danger within Hogwarts or on the train; everything was so well protected. Yet it had happened, and ever since the security on board had gone to extremes, and Prefects were no longer allowed to patrol on their own.

It cast a chill over all those who thought of it. Kurt remembered it being spoken of in his first year at Hogwarts, and knew that everyone had filled with dread, although he himself had known little about it or the people involved.  
>He had never pieced together that it was Blaine; Dumbledore never drew attention to him because Blaine had so requested it. Kurt was sure that at least the older years knew about his relation, however, as there was no such thing as a well-kept secret at Hogwarts. Everything was revealed eventually. But Blaine had not wanted people talking to or about him and so he removed himself from it all, and judging by the circumstances, his wishes were respected.<p>

He locked himself away and tried to close himself off from the whole miserable event, just as he was attempting to do presently. He was talking to Kurt, but he was still heavily guarded in exposing his true emotions and thoughts.

Kurt spoke after a long while; "Blaine…"

Blaine moved his head slightly against Kurt's neck to signal that he was listening. His hair tickled Kurt's cheek but he forced himself to ignore this.

"This wouldn't happen have anything to do with why you pretended to be going to see Snape the other day, would it?" The thought had just struck him; the event had troubled him for the past few days, confused over Blaine's sheepish character after Finn's song to Rachel.

Blaine paused. Kurt looked down at him; he could just see his low cast eyes from underneath the shadow of his eyelashes and his dry lips pressing together as he debated over how to reply. "Do you remember that time we met in the Owlery?"

"Yes," Kurt said softly, there not being a minute of time they had spent together that he could have possibly forgotten. "When you said that why you were up there wasn't important… I'm guessing that isn't so?"

Blaine lifted his head and turned his body around so that he faced the countertenor. His eyes looked strained, not from the presence of tears; more the ferocious attempts to hold them back. His fingers knotted together and his shoulders were drawn up and tense. It seemed to physically pain him to talk about it.

"The Owlery… That was the last place I spoke to him."

Kurt watched as Blaine wrestled with his unwillingness to speak of this tortuous time in his life on the one hand and his wish to be open with his friend on the other.

"He… He always sent a letter home to my parents every day when he was here. Even the last day," Blaine managed to muster a cough of a laugh at the memory. "… He and my parents were really close and he always wrote to them. Even if it was only a couple of sentences."

Kurt nodded, not wanting to interrupt as Blaine struggled to find words. However, it seemed that he was having great difficulty telling Kurt the rest of this reminiscence and the younger Gryffindor was finding it harder to bear with each passing second. So he intervened:

"It must have been hard for them, I take it?"

This had been a bad move and Kurt instantly regretted it, as Blaine seemed to turn over cold at the thought. He began to stare at a small beetle, which was crawling the length of the rock-face behind them, although Kurt doubted that he was actually taking in what he was seeing.

"You know how I told you about my Dad sending me away to summer school?" He asked dryly, a husky tone creeping into his vocal chords as he spoke of his father.

Kurt gave him a short look to confirm the memory.

Blaine had glanced for a second to register Kurt's response, but then turned his attention back to the beetle. "He did that because me and my brother looked very a like, and apparently I reminded him too much of Nathan… But I was that of a lesser version."

Kurt instantly opened his mouth to protest the last comment, but Blaine shook his head; "Honestly, you can try to tell me that it isn't true and that you're sure he loves me just the same and just finds it hard to show it. That it's only because he is still mourning and that makes Nathan seem so much more sacred in his eyes. I have heard it all before, Kurt, and I try to kid myself into thinking that perhaps that is the reason. The reason why he sends me away and why when I'm around he doesn't speak to me and doesn't look me in the eye. I know that is not the case. I am also pretty sure that it has something to do with the fact that I had come out the year after. I had always known, and it made no sense to hide the fact. That seemed to be the last straw from him: Nathan had been his one hope to grow up and get married, give him the grandchildren he so desperately wanted, and be everything he'd always prayed for in a son. I can't do that…or at least not in the same way that he would like. He's a traditionalist, Kurt, and I know that me being gay is something he can never and will never be able handle. I am so close and yet so far from the child who was perfection in his eyes, and nothing I do will ever make up for that fact."

It was strange to watch as Blaine spoke these words. He did not say them angrily, perhaps you could sense the undertone of bitterness if you searched for it, but if anything he said them in a wistful voice. Full of sadness and even a touch of guilt; did he feel bad for not being the same as his brother had been?

Kurt was so taken aback by the curious nature in which his friend had laid out his family frustrations that it took him a while to speak in reply. Blaine just wouldn't allow himself to have an outburst; it was simply so far apart from anything the countertenor had ever been used to.

"Blaine, I… I'm sorry. I hate to think that your Dad would be that way, or that he has led you to think that he is that way-"  
>"He is," Blaine said. Still not angrily, just as though he were stating fact, like a teacher who had merely corrected one word of a line their student had been reciting.<p>

"But whether or not he thinks that way, I'm sure that your brother could never be as… as absolutely wonderful as you are," Kurt was afraid that perhaps his words would reveal too much about his own feelings, but he felt that he had to say it. After all: it was true.

"You didn't know him," Blaine said with a slight sigh. "Sure, he was talented and clever and brave and won awards at school. He was popular in terms of friends and family, but it wasn't just that. He just… He always knew the right thing to say and do and even though my parent's love for him over me was always apparent… that never made me hate him. I don't think anyone could ever hate him… that's why it doesn't make any sense."

Kurt watched as Blaine's brow furrowed in deep confusion as he tried to fathom the reason for his brother's disappearance. He tried to fit together the pieces of the puzzle that had been scattered so far apart that not even the best wizarding minds could reach a conclusion on the mystery.

Kurt was rarely rendered speechless, but the look in Blaine's eyes made it seem impossible to ever conjure up words that would bring him comfort. It seemed that Kurt wouldn't have to fill the silence however as, wrapped up in his own mind as he thought of Nathan, Blaine continued:

"I knew he'd be up there, and so I went to see him because I was nervous about leaving, it being my first year at Hogwarts…"

He wasn't looking at Kurt, but the younger boy instantly clocked that he was speaking about the last time he had seen his brother in the Owlery.

"I was sad to go, of course; I knew that I would miss all my friends over the summer. I had never really fit in back at home: he was my only friend in that world. I knew that I could always tell him things and that he wouldn't judge me for them… I told him silly things, like how I was worried I was going to forget something and that perhaps if I left they would find a reason not to let me back in next year… and…"

Blaine looked up for a moment and Kurt was shocked to see the tears swelling in his eyes.

His resolve had finally broken and the fingers that gripped the stone beside him had turned white, knuckles and joints looking like that of a skeleton. Kurt put his own hand over them, trying not to jump as he felt the ice-cold skin. Blaine swallowed and took a deep breath as he gave in to the water droplets that fell from his eyes and splashed onto the sand by their knees, he grasped Kurt's hand tightly, as though he was clinging to a precious jewel, not wanting it to escape through his fingers and be lost forever:

"… And I said that I was scared of going back on the Hogwarts Express. I'd never liked trains or planes before, and it had made me feel sick on the ride up to the castle… He… He just hugged me and laughed a little – but not in a cruel way, just to put me at ease – he told me that I was being silly in the way that brothers do; it was only a train journey for Christ's sake… and he wouldn't let anything happen to me… He promised I would be safe and probably end up sleeping through the journey anyway… He told me to go back to my dormitory and get my things, and as I turned to go he said it was just a train… What was the worst that could happen?"

Blaine's voice broke on the final few words as he repeated the last thing his brother had ever said to him.

Kurt couldn't stand watching his face any longer and instinctively he leant over to pull Blaine into a tight hug. The 6th Year responded, clinging to Kurt as though he were hanging onto the edge of a cliff, trying with all his might not to plunge to the dark depths of an ocean that lay beneath. Kurt felt the constrictions of the older boy's chest as he continued to try and prevent the tears that had finally forced themselves down his cheeks. He buried his face in Kurt's shoulder, and he could feel Blaine's damp eyelashes brush against his neck as he held him.

"You know they never actually found out what happened… Maybe he's-"

"Don't," Blaine said, his voice sounding as though the words were being pushed out through razors. He rested his forehead on Kurt's shoulder and struggled to take a long breath in. "I can't tell you how many times I have thought over those scenarios. Of him turning up at our house or here at Hogwarts - I used to expect it every time I rounded a corner… I hope for an Owl to bring me a message from him every time I visit that blasted tower… But I know now that it is foolish of me to sit around waiting of the impossible. He's never coming back, Kurt… the sooner I come to terms with that, the better."

Kurt took both of Blaine's hands in his and held them for a while. He didn't want Blaine to be so defeated and so without hope, but he was at a loss of a way to change his mind about it all.

"I'm sorry," Blaine choked, withdrawing one hand to wipe away the tears, leaving the other firmly clasped in Kurt's hand however, and soon returning the second. The warm encasement of his fingers feeling like the only thing rooting him to the earth instead of spiralling off to a place of despair where few people returned from. Kurt seemed to anchor him, keep him steady at a time where that seemed insurmountable. "I didn't mean to… I don't think I've been like this to anyone… or just at all, since it happened."

"Blaine, that's crazy!" Kurt said, "You can't keep something like that bottled up for five years; that damages a person."

Blaine smiled humourlessly as he drew his head back from the boy and looked up into his eyes. "I already feel broken, Kurt."

Kurt felt his own heart fraction a little as this declaration. He allowed his fingers to intertwine between Blaine's and held them tightly, fixing the older boy with an impenetrable stare; "Hey, I wasn't in great shape when you first met me, either, remember? You helped me through that… and I think it's only fair that I return the favour."

"How?" Blaine asked incredulously.

Kurt paused. "I'm not wholly sure yet, it's not as though these types of things can be resolved for either of us overnight… but I think in a day or two you'll see how talking about it will have helped a lot, and of course there is a step further we can take, if you're willing?"

Blaine looked into Kurt's swimming eyes expectantly, feeling like the guided opposed to the guardian, as his friend leant forward and looked down at the ground. The grounds were mostly empty now and the few who were around were far from the pair and seemed to be paying them little attention.

Kurt squeezed Blaine's hand, to pass him comfort and also to prepare himself for his own evasive confession. "Just know that… know that I mean every word of this."

_When you try your best, but you don't succeed_

_When you get what you want, but not what you need_

Kurt looked up at Blaine through his eyelashes and the older boy swallowed deep in his throat and managed to smile genuinely now, although it was still riddled with sadness, opening his mouth to join in.

_When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep_

_Stuck in reverse_

_And the tears come streaming down your face_

_When you lose something you can't replace_

Kurt brushed a thumb against Blaine's cheek, catching one last tear that had fallen. Then he looked down at the ground, slightly embarrassed by his action.

_When you love someone, but it goes to waste_

_Could it be worse?_

Kurt stood up then, looking out to the darkening skies and then back down at the boy who he adored above any other in a unique and indescribable way.

_Lights will guide you home_

_And ignite your bones_

Kurt held out his hand. Blaine took it and stood with him.

_And I will try to fix you_

_And high up above or down below_

_When you're too in love to let it go_

_But if you never try you'll never know_

_Just what you're worth_

_Lights will guide you home_

_And ignite your bones_

_And I will try to fix you_

Both of them had regained tears in their eyes as they sang, all though they did not drop, just remained to cause their eyes to glisten in the approaching moonlight.

_Tears stream down on your face_

_When you lose something you cannot replace_

_Tears stream down on your face_

_And I..._

_Tears stream down on your face_

_I promise you I will learn from my mistakes_

_Tears stream down on your face_

_And I..._

Blaine paused, unable to continue, watching Kurt in amazement as the countertenor led into the last part of the song in a slow solo, fixing Blaine with such great meaning in his eyes that could never be lost in any translation.

_Lights will guide you home_

_And ignite your bones_

_And I will try to fix you_

The air seemed to settle between the two of them for an infinitesimal moment before Blaine stepped forward and embraced Kurt fiercely, wanting to close any space between them so that he could feel every ounce of appreciation seep from his body into Kurt's. Kurt's arms wrapped back around the older boy in true earnest as he felt his hands imprinting on his back as he gripped him like his life depended on it.

"Thank you," He whispered, their cheeks pressed against one another's.

"Any time," Kurt promised, barely able to speak as his voice shuddered, feeling the intention of that embrace whole-heartedly. It pulsed through every fibre of his being.

While these two shared this private moment, however, they were unaware that a third party was present, hiding behind one of the castle walls and watching intently. He had not been able to hear the exchanges between the two and therefore the matters they had spoke of, but the bond forging between them was evident, and not something the spectator was pleased to view. In fact, he made quick plans in his head to change it for his own purposes.

* * *

><p>(Coldplay – Fix you. As if you didn't know. Never fails to make me cry, so I just had to use it in this moment.)<p>

* * *

><p>Sidenote to Miss Lucretia (anyone who is not this person can ignore this comment if you wish, but the answer may interest you):<p>

I received your review, but for some reason it would not allow me to reply? Anyway, I did not want you to think I had ignored your questions!

I understand the housing distribution concerns. I use to think Kurt a Slytherin too, but I really couldn't shake the idea of Courage and how symbolic that word had become for both Blaine and Kurt. I wanted to use that and in order for that to work they just had to be Gryffindors.

Wes and David are in Ravenclaw and I believe that is mentioned? It was supposed to be. They just invade the Gryffindor table because… well, because they pretty much do what they damn well please.

Trent is a Hufflepuff because he is not clever enough to be a Ravenclaw. He is a very sweet character, but not so smart. I'm sure, however, that he is a particularly good finder.

Karofsky needs to be a Slytherin because of the bad association to that house. I needed the instant recognition with the character seeming bad. But, as we all know, being in Slytherin house does not equal an evil witch or wizard. Snape shows us that and I believe Malfoy to an extent – he is just too cowardly to be good. I shall not give too much away, but I have my reasons.

Please do not think you have offended me! It took me a while to figure out the houses. I just wanted to make them fit with the story. You will see more of those as the story progresses.

I hope that clears things up and honestly, never hesitate to ask me anything! It takes a lot for me to be offended, and so long as it is constructive I can handle the criticism! This story has been a learning curve for me to explore my writing further, so any notes or suggestions are most welcome! This goes for anyone else who has read up to this point as well. I won't get mad – promise!

I am sorry that I could not get back to you privately; my account wouldn't even let me on to your profile!

Thank you for reviewing anyway!


	12. Chapter 12: Apologise

Chapter Twelve: Apologise

(Songs: One Republic – Apologise)

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><p>Kurt's hand swept through his hair hastily, causing it to stick out at odd angles. He groaned slightly and buried his head in his hands as he sat on the edge of Mercedes' bed.<p>

"So…Good day?" She asked, a little confused. Her best friend had walked in to the dormitory this morning – him being in the girl's room was hardly unusual practise — and had spent a couple agitated minutes walking up and down the dorm, wringing his hands and skipping nervously as he searched for words which seemed relentlessly locked behind his lips.

Mercedes had been patient, but she was now brimming with curiosity and wished he would spit out whatever was on his mind. Rachel had already left to go and see Jesse, so the two were alone together in the room.

"It isn't today that's bothering me; it's yesterday." Kurt said, head still in his hands, causing the words to come out muffled.

"Kurt, I can barely hear what you're saying… what's going on?" She was beginning to panic a little; he seemed very distressed. She was sure that Karofsky had not started on him again as he did not seem fearful… more frustrated and at his wit's end.

Kurt pulled his face up to see her own, as she stood before him at the foot of the bed, one hand on her hip as her head was cocked to one side. He gave her a tiny grimace and she moved to sit opposite him on Rachel's bed.

"You can talk to me," She said softly, smiling in comfort.

Kurt puffed his cheeks out in exasperation and glanced to the side. "You know how before, the last couple of years I mean… and I told you about how much I loved Finn?"

Mercedes raised an eyebrow, wondering where this was going; "…Yes?"

"I think… Or more I don't think… that I fully understood that."

"Understood what?"

Kurt looked up at her with those sparkling blue eyes, which seemed to burn with an unknown intensity as he whispered:

"Love."

Mercedes' comprehension clicked into place. "Oh…"

There was a pause where Kurt looked out of the window; clearly he wasn't about to admit it specifically himself.

"Kurt… Are you talking about Blaine?"

He looked at her sorrowfully for a second and then suddenly flopped back on the bed dramatically, so that he could now only see the underside of the top of the four-poster bed.

"Yes," He groaned.

Mercedes got up and went round to sit on her own bed, kneeling next to where his head lay and patted his hair in a motherly manner. "You think you love him?"

"I know that I do," Kurt stated simply with absolute conviction, looking up at her from the position of his head on her lap, so that there could be no doubt in her mind of his sincerity.

"Wow, okay, well… is that not a good thing?" Mercedes asked, perplexed by his miserable demeanour.

"No… Well, I don't know. I feel great when I'm around him, wonderful actually. It is like I am sitting on top of the world, even in the sense that I feel slightly light headed and dizzy, as though I am floating through a totally different atmosphere. As though I am floating through the stars. When we're together… I just never want to leave him; I cling to his every word, his every gesture, because it feels as though if I don't pay it the upmost attention it shall all fade away from me, only to become some distant dream. Every moment counts and I cherish each one. I don't know how to describe it; it's incomprehensible, even to me. I feel like I am being enchanted. But then when we are apart I just… Reality hits... Everything does a U-Turn… and I don't know how much more of it I can take."

His best friend struggled to reply for a moment. Listening to the way he spoke about his feelings… He thought that he did not have the right words to describe it, but what he had said sounded miraculous, and not only that, but the_ way_ he spoke of Blaine and the time they spent together… it was as if he truly were on a whole other world, speaking out into oceans of time and space, far away from any place that she herself had ever experienced.

"What do you mean reality hits?" Mercedes asked softly after these ponderings, she was so glad that he was finally revealing all of this to her; of course she had guessed and told him so, but he hadn't been able to say it to her until now, which was unusual; he was normally so quick to stream all of his fanciful ideas about guys he had only known for a matter of days, let alone someone who he had been close to for a couple months now.

"Because it is never going to happen."

The definitive tone to his voice was almost heart breaking.

"You don't know that, Kurt; he seems to really like you," Mercedes encouraged.

"Yeah… as a friend," Kurt said, closing his eyes as his heart sang out for so much more than that.

"_Are_ you just friends though? Occasionally the two of you seem so connected, it seems like it could be more than that." She remembered the interaction between the pair at the table last week. In fact, she was surprised that Kurt was merely confessing feelings; she had suspected that something had already gone on between the two of them and that Kurt had finally decided to admit it. Apparently not. They were a little slow on the uptake, it seemed.

"I think that too…sometimes… but then why hasn't anything happened?" He said in a small but desperately frustrated voice, throwing his hands in the air as he sat up and swivelled round to face her.

"He is probably just as scared about it as you are, Kurt, maybe he doesn't know how to show you how he feels because he doesn't think you'll reciprocate it."

Kurt bit his lip. "I'm hardly one for subtlety Mercedes, he must notice, surely?" He said shortly, his feet bouncing as they hung off of the edge of the bed.

Mercedes had no answer, but Kurt continued regardless.

"I mean every now and again he _seems_ to act as though he might… the small gestures; the little things he says; and the way he looks at me sometimes…but… Eurgh, maybe I am just making it all up in my head… I'm making it all up in my head, aren't I?"

Mercedes paused for a moment. "Look, Kurt, I don't really know the guy; I mean sure, he's been around quite a lot lately and I get on with him, but nothing like the relationship the two of you share. You seem really close. I don't want to tell you he does think of you that way for certain, because if you don't know how he feels by now, I most definitely don't… but you can rule out the possibility."

Kurt nodded slowly, but still looked fairly sombre: "I just… I feel like perhaps I have fallen in too deep now, and I don't know what to do. This is just like last year when my Dad told me I had to choose between seeing Sound of Music or Chicago…But worse, and I didn't think that was possible… What if he doesn't see me that way at all? What if I am just kidding myself… again?"

It felt good for Kurt to spill all of these anxieties and confusions to Mercedes after such a long period of silence, allowing only his own mind to wrestle with such thoughts and conflictions. It was cathartic.

"Well, if nothing else, you two are friends and you rely on each other in that way; you wouldn't want to ruin that."

Kurt sighed, that word again:_ "friends". _He loved that they were, of course, but he couldn't help but yearn for so much more than that. "I think maybe I am just destined to be alone."

Mercedes' eyes were lit with a new flame at that statement: "Don't say that, Kurt, I for one know that isn't true. And that attitude isn't you. You were never one to take no for an answer, remember what happened with Finn? Okay, maybe that isn't the best example as that didn't work out, but are you really going to give up now? Maybe if it doesn't work you'll get your heart broken, and you know I don't want to see that happen to you any more than you do yourself, because it will break mine as well, but what about if you give up now? You'll regret it and forever wonder about what could have been. Besides, it would probably break your heart all the same. You're not a quitter, Kurt, I think that not having your Dad around makes you unsure of yourself at times, but I'm here to say that if you want something that badly then you just have to go for it, or else you'll just end up hating the fact that you didn't."

Tears had welled up in Kurt's eyes but he nodded and took a deep breath, not allowing himself to stay in his sad state. Mercedes took his hand and squeezed it gently. "Thank you, Mercedes… No, I'm not going to give up, not just yet. You're right, of course… and I guess I will just have to show him that I can be even more fabulous than I already am."

"There's the Hummel I know and love," She grinned and held up a hand which he promptly high-fived, both following the action with a snap of the fingers and laughing as Kurt felt filled with hope from the words of his best friend.

* * *

><p>Rachel tried to escape out of Transfigurations as soon as she could after the bell had sounded, but she failed in her attempt.<p>

Finn soon caught up with her; "I think we should talk."

She had caught him looking at her all lesson, and had rushed past him in the common room that morning when he had opened his mouth as she came into view, knowing that she could not allow him time to speak; in fear of what it is he planned on telling her. She was sure she would not like to hear what it was he wished to say.

"There's nothing to talk about, Finn," She assured him, carrying on at a quickened pace. She had been avoiding him ever since he sang to her, but he had finally decided that he could take it no longer. Some things had to be said without the aid of somebody else's lyrics.

Finn pulled her to one side so that she was forced to face him; he looked into her eyes, his own wide in pleading. "Please?"

Her brow furrowed as she frowned and looked around, immediately breaking the unwanted eye contact, seeing that other students had begun to come out into the corridors. She glanced to her left where an empty classroom stood and gestured towards it, "Five minutes, and then I have to go."

Finn nodded and followed her inside.

They closed the door and Rachel crossed her arms, staring him down defiantly, "What is it that you wish to discuss?"

Finn shuffled uncomfortably and looked down at the floor. "I think you should break up with Jesse."

Rachel looked daggers at him, "That is all you have to say? I already know that is what you want, Finn, and I have already told you it isn't going to happen. What do you want? For me to just end it with Jesse for no reason and fall into your arms? I'm sorry, it isn't going to happen, you made your choice with Quinn and I made mine with Jesse. End of story."

She made to leave but Finn held out an arm to cut her off in her path. "There is nothing going on with me and Quinn! If that is all you are founding your decisions on then you have it so wrong, Rachel."

"Don't lie to me, Finn! Besides, even without that, I'm still not picking you over Jesse. Jesse loves me."

Finn took a deep breath and prevented himself from grinding the teeth of his already clenched jaw. "No, he doesn't."

Rachel raised her voice defensively, "Oh really? How would you know Finn? You don't even know the first thing about him."

"He's not right for you, Rachel." Finn persisted.

"What and you are? Look, Finn, I know it seemed like maybe something was going on between us before," she glanced for one side, looking off into the distance as though she was struggling to supress an unreadable emotion, "…But that time has passed, you had the opportunity to have me way before Jesse, but you only took it when you realised I was unavailable. What does that tell me about you?"

"I was going to do that whole song thing before Jesse came on the scene… Okay, yeah, I was going to use a different song, but I was still planning to do it."

Rachel shook her head. "Even if that is true, it doesn't change the fact that I am taken now, and you should respect that."

"You can't trust him, Rachel," Finn blurted out.

Rachel stuck her nose in the air, her hands now placed permanently on her hips as she attempted to draw level with his stupendous size.

"You know this whole jealously issue you have going on is getting ridiculous, why can you not just leave me to be happy? If you really cared about me, you would want that."

"I do want that," Finn said, his hands gesturing out in front of him and his eyes shut in frustration as he tried to convey his meaning without getting too angry. "I… I want that more than anything. Well, more than anything I want you to be happy with me… but if that isn't possible then I just don't want you to be with him."

"Why?" She barked.

Finn swallowed, he seemed conflicted with something as his shoulders hunched and his hands were shoved into his pockets. "There's a lot you don't know about him."

"Oh and you do? When was the last time you even spoke to him?" Rachel demanded fiercely. She had become extremely sensitive over the issue and was sick and tired of them all constantly berating her about a guy who had been nothing but lovely to her personally.

"I don't need to speak to someone to know them." Finn said quickly.

"Well, that really is a stupid thing to say, even for you Finn, and that's saying something!" Rachel snapped. She seemed to regret the words as soon as they left her mouth, but Finn didn't give her time to register their meaning completely or take them back.

"Hey! You know, maybe I'm not the sharpest guy around, and maybe I don't measure up to your new boyfriend's mind - not that I really think he has one at all, or one that is worth anything - but you have no right to say that to me. Especially not now, after all that has happened. You think it's easy for me to see you with him? You think I need any more punishment next to that? And now I can see exactly what being together has done to you. Admit it, you would never have said that before you started going out with him. We all joke about it, but not like in the way you said it."

"Okay, Finn, I'm sorry," Rachel said hastily, wide-eyed and wanting to take back the words instantly. "I shouldn't have said that, I wasn't thinking."

"You know what Rachel, just save it." Finn said angrily, "I hope you and Jesse are happy together; satisfied? Even though I know you won't be because I know he's going to end up stomping on your heart, just like you have mine… I tried to warn you, but clearly there's no getting through to you."

"Finn, I'm -" Rachel tried to step towards the tall boy who she had never seen so upset before, but he held up his hands and took a step back towards the door.

"No, don't waste your breath. I don't want your apologies; it's too late for that."

He backed out of the door and turned sharply, storming off down the hallway, which was again deserted — all other students having already made it to their next classroom.

Rachel stood in the empty classroom, having to lean back on one of the tables for support as her eyes were pulled tight together, tears escaping down from their corners.

_I'm holding on you rope_

_Got me ten feet off the ground_

_I'm hearing what your say, but I just can't make a sound_

Finn continued to walk, fists clenched and pulse pounding in his ears. He opened his mouth.

_You tell me that you need me_

_Then you go and cut me down, but wait_

_You tell me that you're sorry_

_Didn't think I'd turn around and say._

_It's too late to apologise, it's too late _

_I said it's too late to apologise, it's too late_

Rachel glanced to one side with downcast eyes as she walked around the table, still needing to grip one side of it for support.

_I'd take another chance, take a fall_

_Take a shot for you_

_And I need you like a heart needs a beat_

_But it's nothing new_

Finn turned a corner and shut his eyes as he allowed his rage to sweep out of him in song.

_I loved you like a fire red-_

_Now it's turning blue, and you say…_

"_Sorry" like the angel heaven let me think was you_

_But I'm afraid…_

_It's too late to apologise, it's too late_

_I said it's too late to apologise, it's too late_

_It's too late to apologise, it's too late_

_I said it's too late to apologise, it's too late_

_I said it's too late to apologise, yeah_

_I said it's too late to apologise, yeah_

Finn reached the end of the hallway before his next class and Rachel managed to collect herself enough to walk towards the door, but failed herself again as she found the need to clutch the doorframe. They both looked down at the ground, separated by walls and floors, but so close in other ways.

_I'm holding on your rope, got me ten feet off the ground…_

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><p>Hello all, I am so happy about the amount of people who keep adding this story to their Alert lists and reviewing it or sending me messages! Sorry that I did not manage to update yesterday! I am having my cousin staying this week, so it may be difficult some days, but i shall try my best! I am also back at work... Merde. So if I don't update as frequently I do apologise (how appropriate this is being, in keeping with the chapter's theme!) but I will do it as much as I can!<p>

Thank you again guys, you're the best!


	13. Chapter 13: Surprises

Chapter Thirteen: Surprises

(Songs: Joe Brooks – I Find The Light In You…. Now, I am not going to force you to listen to this song. I can no more control you than I can control the chavs yelling absurdities outside my window at present, but I will implore you to listen to this song. Not only for the sake of this chapter and its sentiment, but also just in general if you do not know this artist, you need him in your life. Like, now. I'm not even kidding. Look, I'll even make it super easy for you:

.com/watch?v=zJK2A_51NmM

See, now you have no excuse. But honestly, purely for the involvement in the story… You should WANT to hear it. Listen to it. And don't ever look back… don't ever look back. I shall stop now.)

* * *

><p>Mercedes was not used to hanging around with people who were not her typical friends; she knew the people who she loved and stuck close to them. She may not be popular, but she had those who she could count on at all times and that made her happy. Today, however, her normal three amigos seemed to have been replaced by another trio, who were quite a bit different from her regular crowd…<p>

"Uhh… Why are you guys following me again? You know that Kurt and Blaine aren't here, right?" Mercedes asked curiously as the two Ravenclaws and single Hufflepuff paraded down the corridor after her.

"We don't want to talk to Blaine; he never tells us anything," Trent told her.

"Which leaves conversations with that boy wholly pointless," Wes added, shaking his head at his absent friend's stubborn attitude.

"Right… And so talking to me helps how?" Mercedes asked slowly. She had met these boys on several occasions now, especially after their assistance in Finn's failed plans to win Rachel over. They had even joined the rest of them on their table in the Great Hall at meal times, but she would hardly count them as close enough acquaintances to pursue her quite so fervently. She was positive something other than her delightful company was on the agenda here.

"We need the insider's scoop," David said to her left, leaning his head slightly to wink at her.

She raised an eyebrow; "I'm an insider?"

"Into the minds of those two lover-boys, yes," Trent confirmed.

Mercedes snorted. "If you want to know what is going on with Blaine, I am sure I have no more clue than you do on the matter." She assured them as she came to a stop so as to check her bag for her Herbology textbook that she was afraid she might have left in her dormitory.

The three boys crowded around her as she searched.

"You may not know what is inside Blaine's head – God forbid anyone does-"

"-I bet it's filthy-" Wes interjected.

David continued, "-But you almost certainly have a clearer idea of your friend Kurt's intentions than we should ever hope to have."

"Our ambush failed completely," Trent said sadly.

"Ambush?" Mercedes asked, finding the textbook and slinging her bag back over her shoulder to continue the walk.

Wes quickly clamped a hand over Trent's mouth and grinned full-throttle at the 5th Year girl. "Don't listen to him; he missed breakfast this morning so his brain has gone mushier than a concussed troll's."

Mercedes was not convinced of course, but ignored it; "I have no idea about Kurt's 'intentions,'" She said, not looking at them as she walked briskly forwards.

"Bullshit!" Wes exclaimed as they ran to catch up with her. "You know something and you have to tell us!"

"Correction; I _may_ know something more than you puny guys, but that don't mean I _have _to tell you anything, in fact you haven't given me one good reason not to turn on my heel and leave you squirming with wonder right now about how Kurt may or may not feel," Mercedes stated confidently, newly found sass emanating as she stated her words clearly so that there was no confusion.

"So you know what we mean in regards to the pair of them," David grinned.

Mercedes sighed and rolled her eyes. "Of course I know what you _mean_, a Flobberworm could figure out that there is _something _going on with them one way or another, but that doesn't mean that I either know the details or am willing to share them."

She would stick by Kurt with conviction unless he expressed a wish for her to reveal the information he had confided within her only a few days ago. She was not about to betray him now that he had finally opened up to her about his feelings towards the 6th Year boy.

Wes stepped out ahead of Mercedes and cut her off on her path, causing them all to come to a stand-still as they reached the floor where the Hourglasses stood, filled with multi-coloured sand to indicate how many points each Hogwarts House had gained or lost in the passing year. At the moment, Slytherin were hedging by just a few millimetres, but Gryffindor were surely gaining.

"What if you withholding information could put your best friend's feelings at risk?"

This cast a shadow over Mercedes' face. "How do you mean?"

"You say you don't know Blaine-" David stated, stepping forward to join his friend.

"-But we do-" Trent cut in, also aligning himself.

"-and what we know could be of interest to you depending on how much you know about Kurt's feelings on the matter, if you know anything at all-" David continued.

"-Which we suspect you do." Wes beamed cunningly.

Mercedes looked between the three faces before her. "I thought you said you didn't know Blaine's intentions, let alone feelings?"

"We don't-" David said.

"-Well, not exactly-" Added Trent.

"-But we can guess on the most part." Wes finished.

"Well then, what do you know?" Mercedes asked eagerly.

The three in unison tapped their noses. "If you won't relinquish your information; we cannot do so with ours."

Mercedes bit her lip. Loyalty was a strong principle with her; then again if they did know anything it could aid Kurt in his desire to be with Blaine…or could be something that could mean he would end up crushed, so that she should find out in order to warn him… But how could she be sure of these three? They could be bluffing about their know-how.

David seemed to read her conflictions. "We shall tell you this much; Blaine has not told us anything directly, but as you said anyone can see by simply spectating, that those two have something between them. We can't say for sure because often Blaine himself doesn't know what he thinks or feels about a person."

"How do you mean?" Mercedes asked, leaning forward in spite of herself.

"Because he's ridiculous," Wes said unhelpfully.

Trent shook his head. "He makes things…. Complicated for himself. He isn't the most consistent guy with actions and meanings. He seems to act one way and then his emotions are another; especially when it comes to liking someone…romantically. I think he over-thinks things in some situations and then doesn't think at all in others. He makes itdifficult for himself because he does not have a very good grip on his own thoughts and feelings."

"Sounds… aggravating." Mercedes said finally.

"For us, extremely." Wes nodded. "We try and work him out and then he turns a one-eighty. He sang a song to this guy at a Gap store back home last year — man, was _that_ embarrassing — and we thought they must have been dating or something, but apparently not even that. He runs away with himself sometimes; gets caught up things, and then he'll pass over someone who seems perfect for him for so long..." He said the last part in a suggestive tone, eyes wide at the girl before him.

Mercedes cocked her head to the side. "Are you talking about Kurt there?"

David smirked. "You have to admit; they seem right for each other."

Mercedes was about to agree, but she remembered the illusive persona she was faking in favour of Kurt's privacy; "I hadn't noticed."

David snorted, "_Sure_ you haven't."

"Say I did agree… You think he is neglecting Kurt?"

"Neglecting acknowledging feelings," Trent amended quickly at the sight of her slightly angered expression at the idea. "His own feelings; he may not have realised what Kurt truly means to him. He knows they're great friends and he clearly means a lot to him, but he may not think he is romantically involved, if you will. But he may be. We don't know."

"Okay, this is all really confusing." Mercedes said.

Wes stuck his hands in his pockets and raised his eyebrows high into his hairline in exasperation, puffing out his cheeks. "He is a complicated fellow."

"If what you say is true, couldn't this make him lead Kurt on?" Mercedes asked.

The three glanced at each other with mischievous smiles. "So your friend is in a position to be led on?"

Crap.

Mercedes blanched at the realisation of her give-away. "Err… No, I didn't mean-"

David snickered. "It's all right."

"We guessed anyway; we just needed confirmation." Trent told her.

"And no, he will come to his senses eventually."

"Maybe," Wes scoffed, but David elbowed him.

"He will."

"Perhaps soon."

Mercedes was not sure. "Okay, look you guys, no telling anyone all right? Let those two figure it out on their own - if they can ever manage that. I have to go, but promise me that you won't say anything to Blaine, understood?"

"As if it would help,' Wes laughed.

"Promise!" Mercedes snapped viciously.

"We won't," David said to her kindly, hands up defensively. "Promise."

"Thank you," She said with a sigh of relief and a warm smile, "I'll see you guys later?"

They all nodded and bid her goodbye as she turned towards the girl's toilets in a hurry. It was almost time for class.

On entering the toilets she heard a funny sound. Was it someone being sick behind the cubicle door?

No… It wasn't retching it was… sobbing?

"Hello?" She asked to the closed door.

The crying stopped abruptly.

"Who is it?" A sharp voice responded.

Mercedes' face contorted to one of deep surprise as she slowly pushed open the door, which had been left unlocked in the occupants haste to hide away, and saw the girl crouched on the floor.

She had already recognised her voice, although she had been the last person Mercedes would have expected to find curled up and teary-eyed on the bathroom floor.

"Santana…?"

* * *

><p>"Have you got your eyes closed?"<p>

"It doesn't even matter if I have my eyes closed or not, since your hands are covering them completely anyway!" Kurt said, slightly irritated, his arms flailed about in front of him as he tried to search for something solid to touch while his vision was momentarily impaired.

"Will you quit wriggling? I'm not about to drive you into a brick wall," Blaine chuckled.

Kurt put his arms down reluctantly and said sarkily; "I am sorry for not being partial to having myself blinded."

"Shush, you; we're nearly there and it'll all be worth it." Blaine replied his voice at a whisper next to Kurt's ear. His hot breath tickling his neck.

"Where are you taking me?" Kurt demanded, his voice getting higher by the second. Not that it was doing so from fear, more the reaction to Blaine being so close to him. In fact, the situation in general did not irritate him as much as he was putting on, on the contrary he was quite enjoying the close proximity with Blaine and the soft touch of his fingertips… not that he would ever confess to this. Hence why he was making a show of being directly opposed to it all. In his eyes it was a very clever rouse to throw the older boy off track.

"Kurt, if I told you now then there would be little point to me covering your eyes at all, wouldn't there?" Blaine rolled his eyes, not that his friend could see the motion. Kurt could sense the tone, however.

"If I trip and scuff these shoes on a step I am going to be so-"

"We're here!" Blaine said cheerfully, cutting off Kurt and his fashion grievances.

"Let me see then!" Kurt said, secretly being quite excited by the prospect of whatever Blaine had planned, but staying true to his pretence.

Blaine tapped his forefinger lightly onto the bridge of Kurt's nose, "Are you ready?"

"Yes, for Christ's sake!"

Blaine took his hands away with a flourish of movement and the light hit Kurt's eyelids before he had a chance to open them.

"Ta-Da!"

Kurt's lids fluttered open, looking around wildly.

Then his face fell into a slight pout as he twirled around to face his friend, hands on hips. He stared at Blaine's elated facial features and said in flat monotone; "This is the courtyard, Blaine. I see it _every _day."

Blaine laughed melodically, like the notes of a piano, and took hold of Kurt's shoulders, turning him back around to view the walled garden. He rested his arm out straight on Kurt's right shoulder as he pointed towards the centre, where a small fountain stood. "See anything different?"

"No…" Kurt looked and then he spotted a wooden stool placed by the side of the jetting and twinkling water. Resting against the stall was a wooden instrument, which he recognised from the first night he and Blaine had officially met and spoken in the Gryffindor common room.

Kurt glanced around, seeing that there were several Hogwarts students already sitting around and walking through the courtyard, and more were going to be arriving since the lessons of the day had all ended and it was a beautiful summer's day. They would want to come and stretch their legs from a long day of being cooped up in classrooms and dungeons.

The cogs in Kurt's mind clicked into place as he slowly turned back around, "Blaine, what are you…"

But when he had looked round at the spot where Blaine had been standing just moments ago, his figure was no longer there.

Kurt whirled back — feeling slightly dizzy from all of this spinning — only to spot Blaine just metres away from the guitar by the fountain.

He quickly darted forward, but by the time he had gotten close enough Blaine was already sitting down and slinging the guitar around his shoulders.

"What are you doing?" Kurt demanded, words spouting form his mouth in quick succession and he carried on spying the people around.

"Relax, it's nothing bad." Blaine said, smiling crookedly at Kurt, causing his heart to flutter as more students began to flock into the courtyard.

"Sonorous," Blaine said, the tip of his wand to his throat so that his next words ricocheted off of the walls like amplifiers were imbedded in the stone. He had picked a good place for acoustics; it had to be said. "Hello everybody."

Student's faces turned and Kurt took a couple steps back, his fingers over his lips as he shook his head incredulously. What was this? He wasn't sure if he was supposed to be thrilled or full of dread.

He felt both.

"I know these impromptu musical performances may be tiring on everybody, but I have one more song that I would like to distract your ears with for just a moment. Then you may go on your merry way. Thank you."

The Hogwarts students gathered round, whispering excitedly and Kurt shrank back into the crowd, slightly horrified. Again, he saw a gaggle of girls giggle amongst themselves as they crowded around. Kurt felt slightly annoyed, but smug at the same time by their foolish crushes.

Blaine looked back at him then, grinning from ear to ear and restoring any confidence in him he may have lost. Blaine looked down at the strings of the guitar and began to strum delicately with the tips of his fingers.

_I don't think there's a word, I ever heard_

_That captures the innocence of you_

_And I wouldn't want one too_

_And no, I wouldn't want one to_

_It would be like smothering a star_

_Or covering a work of art_

_Driving so fast that the view falls apart_

_Like I do_

_Without you_

Kurt's heart raced faster than he had thought possible, so that his whole body seemed to tingle as he stood, awe-struck by what was happening.

Blaine was singing. Singing beautifully. It wasn't like the performance of Teenage Dream, which had been so mesmerizing in itself. But this song, it went deeper than that. It was not merely a song intended for a pleasing performance. Blaine was singing from his heart and soul and one look into those golden-brown eyes confirmed it. Kurt had never before witnessed something so purely mellifluous, and he couldn't help but stand and fight to fathom why.

_But I'm on my way home_

_And I'm worn to the bone_

_And when my heart hits an all time low_

_There's something shining through_

_I find the light in you_

_I find the light in you_

Blaine broke into the most charming smile at the last words, as his eyes remained securely on Kurt's own, as though the crowd that swarmed around them no longer existed. Or simply no longer mattered.

_I don't think there's a sun that's ever shone_

_Brighter than the radiance of you_

_And I wouldn't want one to_

_No, I wouldn't want one to_

_It would be a fire forever tamed_

_A burn without the pain_

_A heat that never warms the veins_

_Like you do_

_Like you do_

_But I'm on my way home_

_And I'm worn to the bone_

_And when my heart hits an all time low_

_There's something shining through_

_I find the light in you_

Blaine strummed the guitar with new fervency as the tempo picked up and the energy of the song flowed through him. It streamed right through from his core, as he tended to the instrument in his arms and it was as though he was stood right next to Kurt as he sang so purposefully, even though he was several feet away.

_Take my hand and we can beat_

_This glimmer of a dream_

_Out from the corner_

_Oooooo_

_Place your fingers into mine_

_And we can find a world_

_If we believe it we can breathe it_

_Breathe it into life_

_Yeah_

_And I'm on my way home_

_I'm worn to the bone_

_And my heart hits an all time low_

_There's something shining through_

_But I'm on my way home_

_And I'm worn to the bone_

_And when my hearts hits an all time low_

_There's something shining through_

_I find the light in you _

_I find the light in you_

_I find the light in you…_

Kurt stood mesmerised and rooted to the spot as he watched. Every change of expression on Blaine's face, every new note he hit, made him feel as though he were being lifted higher and higher into the air by invisible, soft hands.

Blaine's words seemed to swim from his mouth and coil down, wrapping around Kurt like a blanket and streaming across his skin, burying into him and shining through the surface.

The sound of his voice echoed around his head as though it was never going to leave; a permanent accompaniment to his own thoughts.

It took a couple moments before Kurt remembered how to breathe and by that time the applause had subsided and the students began to move away on their own business for the day.

And now Blaine was walking towards him.

Kurt had to wrench his heart and mind down from the clouds they were currently floating on far above the pair of Gryffindors and collected himself at lightning speed before Blaine found his feet in front of the younger - and most overwhelmed - countertenor.

"So…what did you think?" Blaine asked, a little sheepishly.

"Good," Kurt breathed, rapidly nodding his head in short bouts. "Very, very good."

Blaine seemed to relax entirely at the acceptance. He looked up into Kurt's face with his round eyes, which shimmered in the sunlight. "After you sang Fix You to me, I felt I needed to return the favour. I know we haven't known each other too long, Kurt, but I can't express in simple words how much I care for you and value you…" He seemed to falter for a second, and quickly regained composure, "Your friendship means more to me than just about anything… and I also wanted to let you know how… how brilliantly unique you are, Kurt, I hope you know that. I hope you can see it just as much as I do."

Blaine ducked his head a little, which seemed a little uncharacteristic but Kurt's mind was too busy whizzing repeatedly through the words that had been spoken to him. Friend. Brilliantly. Friend. Unique. Friend. Care for you. Friendship… Is this what friendship felt like to Blaine? It certainly didn't seem like that to him.

"Kurt, are you okay?" Blaine asked, looking a little worried as he raised his bowed head to look at the younger boy, who found it impossible to respond, feeling despair sweep through his euphoria.

Unthinkingly, Blaine took one of Kurt's hands and squeezed it. "Kurt there is something else I-"

Before Blaine could finish that sentence, however as a voice behind them roared:

"Everte Statum!"

The hurling hex hit Blaine squarely in the chest, causing his feet, which had been planted previously so firmly before Kurt's, to be torn from the ground and his entire body blown backwards as though he had just been hit by a ginormous frying pan. He flew back and landed unceremoniously into the fountain, water spraying in all directions as he was thrust into it.

Kurt barely had time to take in what had just happened, let alone give any sort of reaction to the boy he adored being under such sudden and unfathomed attack, before a large boy in Slytherin robes came into view on the great stone steps outside the castle doors.

* * *

><p>Don't you just LOVE a good cliffhanger?<p>

I know I do.

The line between love and hate is just so very thin, isn't it?

Thank you for all the love so far guys, I know this is a bad way for me to return the favour, but hey, we can't all be as wonderful as Klaine, right?


	14. Chapter 14: Goodbye

Chapter Fourteen: Goodbye

(Songs: The Kooks – Already Miss You)

* * *

><p>In advance: I do apologise…<p>

* * *

><p>Karofsky's huge figure stood with his wand outstretched before him, panting slightly as the last of the water from the fountain plummeted to the ground, splashing the grey stone slabs, and causing their patterns to sink in like everlasting stains.<p>

Kurt's head span as he stood dumb-struck with shock, rooted to the spot, unable to move or think or feel or speak. He just stared blindly up at the scene before him; mouth dropped open like a goldfish and arms hanging hopelessly by his side, while his hand still had the imprint of warm temperature from when Blaine's had been ripped from it moments ago.

His breathing managed to force its way back through, slowly regaining function of his lungs, just as Blaine stood upright in the fountain.

His robes were drenched from the water, and he shook off the heavy black material so that he only wore his trousers, shirt and tie beneath. His white shirt clung to his skin and his hair was dripping wet, causing his curls to fall down across his forehead. It would have been a stunning picture to behold if it had not been muddied by the grievous events occurring at that point in time.

He placed one hand over his chest, bent double after having been winded, as he staggered to his feet. He looked pale and confused as he raised his head to see the cause of the sudden hexing which had struck him so unprecedentedly. When his eyes rested on Karofsky they widened for a moment before turning to fire and his jaw clenched.

"_What the hell do you think you're doing_?" He cried, raising his wand automatically as his eyes tensed, trying to untangle the mess of his own thoughts, which attempted to calculate his present circumstances, head still spinning from the impact of the Slytherin's spell.

"_Expelliarmus_!" Karofsky bellowed.

Blaine's wand shot out of his hand and cluttered to the ground. The other students watched on, just as petrified as Kurt seemed to be. This was so beyond anyone's expectations, and nobody seemed to know how to react to such a show of madness within the courtyard.

Blaine jumped over the rim of the fountain to try and collect his wand as soon as it had flown out of his hand, but it was no good.

"_Impedimenta_!" Karofsky snarled causing Blaine to trip and go into an almost cartoonish slow motion as he reached towards his wand, his fingertips dangerously close to the tip.

Kurt finally found his voice. And his body.

He leapt forward, pulling at the massive arm, which held the wand directed threateningly at the frozen Blaine.

"Stop it! Why are you doing this? _What the hell is your problem_?"

He desperately tried to shift the great weight of Karofsky's limbs, but it was a futile hope. He turned to force his rage upon the younger Gryffindor. "Back off Hummel; I won't hesitate to jinx you."

"I don't doubt that!" Kurt thundered, "Not for one second - you've proved that much. You picked on me, but don't you even_ think _to touch Blaine!"

Karofsky swept his arm in one clean motion, knocking Kurt backwards and off of his feet so that he fell to the floor.

"Afraid I'm going to hurt your little boyfriend, Kurt?" Karofsky growled under his breath, the words dripped from his mouth like venom and he spat the penultimate word with the deepest loathing. There was that strange look of sadness behind the fury, however, and Kurt did not fail to see it.

He stared up at him from the ground, his eyes quivering as he racked his brain for a reason why the boy before him was continuing to go to such lengths to disrupt his life and now Blaine's - and how he could look so pitiful while doing something so monstrous…

Karofsky gave Kurt one last anguished look before growling as he twisted back around to the temporarily immobilised 6th Year, bringing his wand up in preparation.

"_No_!" Kurt yelled, throwing himself forward into the gap between Blaine and the Slytherin. He spread his arms out protectively. "Leave him alone! What has he ever done to you?"

Karofsky did not answer the question; he merely looked on at Blaine murderously. "Get out of the way, Hummel."

"Never."

Kurt stood his ground. His knees shook, his heart raced and his entire body felt sick, but he would not move without the use of incredible force.

Karofsky's face contorted with some deep-rooted confliction. He let out an angry noise of frustration and pointed his wand between Kurt's eyes. "Don't make me do this, Kurt."

This made the countertenor pause for a moment: he had always been addressed as 'Hummel' by present company, but never his first name. Why would Karofsky choose now to use such an informal and friendly name for him? And why would he speak it as if he were begging him…?

Kurt felt dizzy from his bewilderment. He felt as though he would sway and fall down at any moment for having to confront this boy once again. His stomach twisted and his palms sweated beneath his fingers, which were hugged into fists.

Karofsky opened his mouth to perform some kind of spell, his face scrunched up as though such an action caused him physical pain — though not enough to prevent him from doing so completely — but Kurt was knocked aside just in time.

The younger boy fell to the floor once more, looking up just in time to see Blaine standing over him - having recovered the use of his limbs. The fall Kurt had taken was not a painful one as the last had been, however; as although there was nothing there, Kurt felt as though he had fallen onto a stack of soft-feathered pillows and he was sure that this strange sensation was something of Blaine's own doing to break his fall.

"_Deprimo_!" The older Gryffindor shouted and Karofsky suddenly faltered, bending low as though a great weight, such as a boulder, were forcing itself down upon him. As he struggled Blaine said in the most vicious and seething voice that Kurt had ever heard emitted from his mouth: "If you _dare _to even _attempt_ to harm him again, then so help me I will…"

Apparently he could not even find the words to complete the statement, his chest merely rose and fell sharply, contracting as his whole body tensed, staring down at his attacker.

Kurt looked around in despair from his position on the ground. He stared up into the faces of those students around him who were doing nothing to help. He made eye contact with a few who suddenly seemed to come to their senses and allow life to jolt back into their bodies, and ran back to the castle. _Please, God, let them be getting a teacher_, Kurt begged internally.

"You'll what, Anderson?" Karofsky demanded with great difficulty, as his voice became strained and strangled from weight of the curse. "What could you possibly do to me? You won't fight me; it's against the rules. You know that we're not allowed to duel with each other, but you're the one who isn't man enough to break barriers. You're weak… And pathetic."

Even for Karofsky, Kurt could tell that these words were spoken with particular hostility. The look in his eyes… Kurt could not even hope to ever comprehend the thoughts roaming behind them.

"You don't scare me, you know. You can seek out Kurt and I'll protect him. You can bully me and I'll defend myself. At the end of the day, I'll be the one who stays and you'll be out of here for doing this, Karofsky," Blaine hissed.

"No, I won't," Karofsky panted. "I'll come back here, or I'll find him elsewhere, I'll take him away from you, and you know that I will. You can't hold onto anything, Anderson, not Kurt, not your brother, not–"

Blaine didn't allow him to finish that sentence as he erupted in a moment of madness that was beyond any logical reasoning:

"_Incendio_!"

"Blaine, NO!" Kurt screeched but it was too late; the jet of fire exploded from the end of his wand and flew towards Karofsky, who yelled as he fell backwards. The Slytherin's robes were set ablaze as flames swarmed across his entire body, causing him to turn into a great ball of fire, a beacon blindingly burning in the centre of the courtyard. He yelped and shook them off hastily, narrowly escaping burns on his own skin and leaving his white shirt singed brown in several places. "Blaine you'll be expelled!" Kurt cried hysterically, trying to get up to join his friend. But he was prevented from going any further.

The arm that contained Blaine's wand suddenly shot out to point instead at Kurt, his eyes still fixed on an advancing Karofsky as he yelled:

"_Protego_!"

A great shield encircled the 5th year, but it was not large enough to protect the older boy, who was forced to dive forward as the Slytherin cast a simultaneous spell:

"_Bombarda Maxima_!"

A thunderous clap sounded, reverberating off of all surrounding surfaces, and it was met by screams of panic from several students who were made, like Blaine, to jump out of the way as the back wall of the courtyard exploded, as though it had been blown up by dynamite. Bits of rubble catapulted into the air and many more shield charms began to be produced from anyone still in the surrounding area. All of the other students either ran out of the courtyard or back into Hogwarts in fear of the tumultuous duel that was occurring outside between these boys.

The dust settled between them and Blaine quickly rolled over and sprang back up to his feet, pointing his wand back at Karofsky, who had been sent to his knees in an attempt to escape the effects of his own curse.

Kurt then realised that Blaine was standing lopsided, supporting one of his arms, which he knew must have been hit by one of the bricks that had flown from the exploded wall. His arm was dripping blood from the shoulder, and the red colour streaked down the white material of his shirt as he clung to it. Blaine looked at Karofsky with hatred, fighting against the pain.

"I can curse you too, Karofsky. I am warning you; I don't want to hurt you. That's enough, okay?"

Karofsky stared at Blaine for a second, and then looked to Kurt, whose eyes were fixed on Blaine's own injury with the deepest concern.

This seemed to disturb something deep within the Slytherin as he suddenly filled with rage once more.

"_Stupify_!"

Blaine was prepared for the attack however, as he shouted the same spell in return. He launched himself to the side to avoid the curse directed at him, but Karofsky was hit full in the stomach by his own. He was knocked from his knees to his back, where he lay unconscious on the stone ground.

"ENOUGH!" a loud, horror-filled shriek sounded from behind them all.

Kurt barely had time to look up as McGonagall cast up a far more powerful shield charm between the two parties, even though the likelihood of Karofsky being able to continue the duel now was slim.

Now that any immediate danger had passed, Kurt raced over to where Blaine was crouched to the ground, his energy evaporated now that the duel had ended.

His white shirt and hair were still damp from the water and the dirt and dust from the rubble had made his clothes grubby and darken, easily absorbed into the wet material, but the crimson stain down his arm was the more prominent problem.

"Blaine…" Kurt whispered through tears. Then his tone turned slightly icy. "Blaine, you _imbecile_! Why did you do that? Why? You shouldn't have done that. What the _hell_ did fighting him prove exactly?" He gritted his teeth, but despite his enraged tone he sharply pointed his wand at his friend's injury:

"_Tergeo… Ferula_"

Kurt's spells caused the blood to be siphoned off of the wound and bandages to be conjured to wrap around his arm.

"I'm still so goddamn furious with you! You realise what you have done, don't you? Are you _happy_ now?"

Blaine did not answer, still breathing heavily as he looked up at the figure that had now cast a shadow over the two boys.

Kurt also looked up at the Transfigurations teacher.

"Leave us, Mr Hummel, thank you. He'll be fine…Physically anyway."

Kurt did not even seem to process the implication towards the end of her sentence; he merely opened his mouth in protest.

"_Go_!" She seemed to quake with supressed anger, her lips pursed tighter than he had ever seen them and her skin a ghostly pale shade as she pointed her finger up to the castle doors.

Blaine reached out to touch Kurt's forearm with his free hand, but thought better of it after the berating he had just undergone. When he finally whispered a response, his voice seemed fractured, as he knew that he was awaiting his fate at the hands of McGonagall, but at that moment he was more tormented by the idea that his actions had upset the boy next to him: "Kurt, I…"

The younger Gryffindor just shook his head and got up, refusing to look at him.

He looked up to see Snape leading the now revived Karofsky back towards the castle. Many teachers had now appeared around the courtyard, casting spells to try and repair the damage that the two boys had inflicted upon the school.

The large boy looked up and caught Kurt's eye. It was that mysterious look again, but far from feeling curious or pitiful for the boy now, Kurt could only fix him with the deepest hatred, as he turned his attention back to the fallen boy beside him who he cared for to a far greater extent. Every fibre of his being ached as he stared down at Blaine's painstakingly beautiful face as McGonagall pulled him to his feet. Kurt wrestled against his anger at what had just happened and his impossible love for Blaine, but in the end he just closed his eyes, folded his arms and walked away from the scene; at that moment all he wanted was to put as much distance between him and the pair of them as he was able to. The conflictions in his head and in his heart were slowly driving him insane.

* * *

><p>Blaine sat in McGonagall's office on the small chair in front of her desk. She sat behind it on the larger chair, but at that moment she made it seem as though it were her seat that was more uncomfortable.<p>

She was leant forward, her lips still locked tight and her hands clenched together on the edge of the table.

He had been permitted a change of clothes while Madame Pomfrey had been called down to fix up his arm where, unless you had seen the battle directly, few would notice the injury there at all.

She had not yet spoken to him, merely fixed him with her piercing eyes, which seemed strained, so that Blaine knew the news coming his way was bad. Really bad.

He held his breath in preparation for the worst.

"I will not even pretend to have any desire to know _why_ it is you wished to engage in a duel with Mr Karofsky," the Professor began, her voice sounding exhausted. "I have spoken to him and his own motivations he seems relentless on withholding."

Blaine himself was under no doubt as to why the Slytherin had done what he had. He had not been completely certain beforehand, which was why he had said nothing to Kurt, but now his fears were confirmed. Although he was not about to relinquish the information either.

"I have told him his own punishment," McGonagall continued, closing her eyes for a moment. "And all though he may have been the one to instigate the duel, as I have heard from several eye-witnesses who were present in that courtyard, you responding to it in anything but a defensive manner is unquestionably against the school rules. It was unnecessary and blindingly foolish."

Blaine did not say anything; his body merely filling with dread as he listened and the words she spoke seemed to increase in volume so that they practically bellowed at him around the room, echoing off the walls, and drilling into his mind. Despite the fact that she said them in a controlled, low voice.

"I will not tolerate such actions within Hogwarts, Mr Anderson. It is absolutely unforgivable. You should know better, you should _both_ know better. You may not have always been a model student here, considering the antics you and your friends often indulge in, but you always appeared to have a certain degree of common sense in that head of yours. Why you have decided to change that stature now, I cannot fathom. I am so very disappointed in you; I have known you well since you entered Gryffindor house, and to have witnessed your behaviour today… I have no other choice here, and I believe it to be a fitting punishment. I have seen Dumbledore and he has approved my decision."

Blaine's pulse pounded in his ears, his stomach contracted sickeningly and he felt as though he had just stepped off a rollercoaster too early, and was about to be sent crashing into the earth.

"As well as One Hundred and Fifty points being taken from Gryffindor, you are hereby suspended from Hogwarts for the remainder of this school year."

Blaine's face crumpled as he stared at her in confusion. "But…my exams?"

"You will be unable to complete your 6th Year examinations, of course, which should start in a few weeks once OWLs are completed by 5th Year students, so next year, when you are permitted to return to this school — and may you be thankful, Mr Anderson, that you have been given that privilege as it is; you and Mr Karofsky were very close to being expelled all together — next year you shall re-join the new 6th years."

"Repeat the year?" Blaine asked, his mind seemed to be desperately battling to swim above his confusion as he tried to process this information and its meaning.

"Yes, Mr Anderson, again; you are very lucky that it is _only _this suspension, and so I would not make any complaints to me or anyone else, or a more serious reprimand could be administered, do I make myself clear?"

Blaine nodded quickly, biting his lip to prevent tears swelling in his eyes. "Yes… I wasn't going to protest, Professor."

McGonagall looked down at the defeated boy before her. He himself looked at the mahogany desk below, feeling despair sweep through him as well as anger at himself for what he had done and how it had affected his position at Hogwarts as well as his relationship with Kurt. Was he still mad at him? Would he be forgiving? Blaine wasn't sure if he could handle it if he weren't…

"Anderson," McGonagall said, her voice having grown a little softer from her previously curt tone and pulling him away from thoughts of the countertenor. "I understand that this news is distressing, but I know that you are a good student, this event aside, and I hope that you will take this as a lesson and think carefully about how you will carry yourself next year. I do not want to see you in this office ever again."

Blaine looked up at her, he felt guilty for having let her down, for having let his House down. He tried not to let himself think about how he had let Kurt down at that moment — it was too painful.

"You won't, I promise."

She sighed and gestured towards the door. "You may go now, we have contacted your parents and you and Mr Karofsky shall be escorted off of the premises very shortly. A prefect is waiting outside for you, he will take you to your dormitory where you shall collect your things and then you shall report to the Hogwarts Express. In separate carriages, naturally. I hope that the time away shall allow you some valuable thinking time."

"Wait, I have to go immediately?" Blaine suddenly piped up, straightening his back as he stared at her. Kurt and the others were now at dinner and would not be out for another couple of hours. He wouldn't have the chance to speak to him…

"You will be back next year, Mr Anderson, the school shall be informed of yours and Mr Karofsky's departure tomorrow morning. I am sure that you can write to your friends over the summer. Otherwise, you will simply have to wait, and maybe that will also help you to consider your actions. Now leave my office, you only have an hour and a half before the train leaves."

Blaine could find no way to argue, nor did he think it wise. Yet, he so desperately wanted to see Kurt. He had to explain, to apologise, to hug him goodbye… He turned away from the Transfigurations teacher as he screwed up his eyes, trying to push away the strange feelings attached to the ideas of not being able to see Kurt for another few months. For so long he could not fully comprehend why he had yearned to see him so much, but he now had a clearer idea of the general reasoning.

He knew deep in his soul that he could no longer exist in any kind of happiness without Kurt. The detailing of why exactly that was may not have been in perfect clarity until now, but of that fact he had always known in some respect. The feeling had grown upon him ever since he had decided to sing Kurt that song. The moment he realised the truth in the lyrics and how much he had to reveal it to the younger Gryffindor. Even if Kurt never realised the true meaning he had tried to convey, he hoped the core message would be enough. He inwardly slapped himself; he shouldn't be wasting his thoughts on futile hopes and dreams. It was a fantasy, and he would not allow that to distract him now; he had a deadline to attend to, it seemed, and he could not do anything that would further damage his place here at Hogwarts. The place that he held sacred in his heart, and that he would now have to be torn away from…

* * *

><p>Kurt rushed down the corridor, having skipped out of dinner early. He desperately needed to find Blaine, to find out what had happened to him. He had to speak to him; he had to tell him that he wasn't angry and that he didn't blame him. How could he stay furious at the boy who his very soul seemed to shout out for?<p>

He ran down the stairs towards the main entrance of Hogwarts; if they had expelled him maybe he could still catch him upon leaving, try to reason with the teachers. Anything. _Something_ – he had to do something.

As he found himself on the Ground Floor of Hogwarts castle he saw the great oak doors and one figure that stood beneath them.

Well, technically there were two figures. Mrs Norris curled around Filch's ankles as he swung a big set of bronze keys around on his fingers.

Kurt ran towards him, out of breath by the time he was in speaking distance of the caretaker, who leant forward upon seeing the Gryffindor boy, a gleeful glint in his eye.

* * *

><p>Blaine stood outside Kurt's dormitory door - the room inside was empty. He stood with his now full suitcase on the floor beside him; the only other occupant of the common room was the prefect who waited for him downstairs. He stared down at the piece of parchment in his hand, Kurt's name scribbled on the top. He looked back to the door. His eyes seized together and he pushed back the tears struggling to escape. He saw in his mind's eyes Kurt's upset and disappointed face as he had stood up to leave him with McGonagall earlier that day. He thought of the younger boy's outrage, his disapproval and it made his heart sink like a stone to somewhere within the region of his kneecap. He scrunched up the letter in his fist and stuffed it into his pocket. He bent to pick up his trunk and proceeded down the stone staircase. Kurt did not want to hear from him right now, and he deserved more than a hastily scrawled note…<p>

* * *

><p>"Have you seen-"<p>

"You just missed him," Filch smirked.

"Is he?" Kurt's eyes raced wildly to try and read the smug expression on the caretaker's face, and he felt a lump rise in his throat and licked his lips in panic.

Filch snickered. "Technically, I am not supposed to tell you, Hummel, as you students will be told tomorrow. But I want to put you out of your misery."

Kurt was positive that his reason for telling had nothing to do with any sort of compassion or fear for his own well being on Filch's part, and most likely had to do with a wish to see Kurt's reaction and reeling in it.

"Mr Anderson has been suspended from the rest of his year here at Hogwarts and -" He waved at the hourglasses. " - As you can see, he has also affected Gryffindor's chances at the House Cup."

Kurt didn't even look up at them; he had no interest in the Cup when other matters that were much more important were crashing down around him. He put a hand to his chest so as to steady himself a bit from the blow of this news. "They can't do that!"

Filch cackled in his raspy voice. "I think you'll find they already have, Hummel."

Kurt shook his head, his throat feeling choked with his oncoming sobs already. "He's left?"

Filch nodded, "And that Slytherin boy too, mind."

"He's gone…" Kurt whispered, more to himself than the caretaker, he looked down at the ground, just as one of his tears hit the surface and splashed outwards in a forked circular shape.

"I'll leave you to it," Filch said, supressing more laughter as he shuffled off down the hallway, Mrs Norris at his heel.

Kurt looked up at the door, he desperately wanted to run out of it and out to the Hogwarts Express, but he knew they would be bolted shut and there was no way of him doing so.

He put a hand over his mouth as the tears fell freely down his face, interweaving between his fingers and the salty tang hitting his lips. His shoulders shook as he cried and he found himself knelt on the floor of the empty hall. The hand by his mouth trembled as he cursed himself for not having escaped sooner; for not having told Blaine he had forgiven him earlier. Why did he have to be so stubborn? After all that Blaine had done for him that year… surely his response to Karofsky was just more evidence of him defending Kurt? And yet he had pushed him away because of it, and now had no way to reconcile. Now Blaine would think he hated him, when in truth it was quite the opposite.

Kurt put his shaking hands up to his temples and shut his eyes tight as he battled with himself. How he wanted his hand to be encased in Blaine's at that moment; how he wanted to look into those astonishing eyes and tell him everything he felt for him; how he wished he could embrace the older boy one more time; how he hated himself for not having come to his senses early enough to be able to say goodbye…

_I know you're feeling bitter_

_What I said last I didn't mean_

_And now that I'm a little better_

_This is what I meant to say_

_Babe, I already miss you_

_Sweetheart, I already miss you_

_Sweet eyes, I already miss you_

_And you only just walked out the door_

_You know I hate talking on telephones_

_I'm so sorry; it's just my way_

_And now that I'm a little older_

_There's so much to you I'd like to say_

_Babe, I already miss you_

_Sweetheart, I already miss you_

_Sweet eyes, I already miss you_

_And you only just walked out the door_

Kurt stared up at the door through bleary eyes, which he then shut tight in one last regret-filled gasp of breath as he looked back to the floor, feeing a hollowness swallow him in the pit if his stomach. A dull ache presenting itself firmly in his chest.

* * *

><p>Dear readers, I apologised in advance at the top of this page, but I have left you on another cliff-hanger! This one is substantially less so than the one before, and I am sorry because I said that I would update yesterday, but I didn't. Fortunately for you, my sleeping pattern is out of whack, so I happen to still be up at what is nearly 7am in the morning. So apologies if the editing on this chapter is appalling. I would like to thank you for staying with me so far, and I will ask you to bear with me because, in my opinion, it is just getting good. Then again, I am incredibly biased!<p>

Love you guys. Glee is filming this week! Pottermore's Quill search is over! Oh, it's on, bitches…


	15. Chapter 15: Untold

Chapter Fifteen: Untold

(Songs: My Heart - Paramore)

* * *

><p>The exams seemed to pass by Kurt in a blur. He was thankful for the distraction in all honesty, revision beat worrying himself about Blaine.<p>

He had heard nothing from him. No letters or anything. Neither had Wes, David or Trent and it began to make him sick with concern. Why was he not talking to any of them? Was he angry? Was he okay? He pushed any thought of a similar occurrence to Blaine's brother out of his mind – if such a thing had happened, Hogwarts would at least know that he had gone missing – surely?

No, he had to concentrate on other things - anything to keep him busy and focused on other aspects of his life.

His friends seemed remorseful, not of Blaine's absence, but of the clear effect it had on Kurt - not that they didn't feel awful for what had happened to the Sixth year as well, but Kurt's state was of greater concern. He was almost the same way he had been back when Karofsky had been harassing him, but now he and the boy who had pretty much saved him from all of that were gone, and he was just as miserable as ever.

They were supportive, but all of their time had been taken up by studying for their OWLs, so not even Mercedes had talked to him about it much. She had attempted to at first, of course, but he told her respectfully that there wasn't really much to say after relaying the events of the afternoon, which had caused the suspension, to them all. He was gone and Kurt knew nothing more, he missed him terribly and felt guilty for how they had left each other. Besides that he knew little of what he could do or she could say to him to make him feel any better. She had tried but it had been to no avail, he told her that he appreciated her efforts but that for now they should all just concentrate on examinations and put all other affairs out of their heads.

Kurt felt as though he had gone into autopilot for the next couple of weeks. He ate, slept, talked back when spoken to and took his OWL exams without thinking much about each of them. He felt as though he had done okay in them all, but he couldn't be sure. He hadn't felt nervous through any of them, and he couldn't decide whether that would be a hindrance or a help. Supposedly it was a good thing, but then again nerves often heightened your ability to do things or generally stimulated your senses. He certainly had always felt extremely nervous whenever Blaine was around…

Still, the countless study sessions with a student who was a year ahead, and therefore advanced in many subject areas, had probably worked to his advantage, especially as very few things that Blaine had ever said to him - no matter how mundane and school-related — escaped his head at all.

Finn and Rachel were still not talking; in fact, she barely sat with them at all these days. She sat with Jesse while Wes, David and Trent took her and Blaine's place amongst the other three Gryffindors.

Rachel still talked to Mercedes and Kurt, of course, Mercedes being her roommate and Kurt spending a great deal of his time in their dormitory with them anyway. They had not troubled her about Jesse, especially after all that had happened. It seemed that her and Finn were concrete on their decision to ignore the other's existence, at least for now, and Rachel often insisted that she and Jesse were closer than ever.

On the most part, her friends could admit that he appeared to make her happy and was pleasant to her and not a total pain in the ass to talk to so long as Finn was nowhere near. Having said that, neither Mercedes nor Kurt would ever go to any lengths to say they actually liked the guy. He could be okay, but at the end of the day the effect he had upon their friendship and his general attitude was disruptive, and they couldn't help but feel suspicious of him.

Finn spent a lot of the time that they spent with Rachel with Quinn, much to the former's displeasure. Kurt was unsure what would come of such a friendship, but decided not to pry too much into his brother's private life if he did not wish to willingly divulge it. Also, Kurt had a feeling that if he tried to get Finn to open up, his brother would in turn attempt the same action with himself, something he was most opposed to doing at that moment, wishing to merely sink into his blackened state.

* * *

><p>Mercedes filed out of her last examination, stretching her arms out to the side in relief. She had no idea where the others had got to, since they had been in separate rooms, but she was sure to run into them sooner or later. For now, she just let her heart swim and be lifted out of the iron binds of stress, which had been clamped there while her OWLs were in motion. It was over. She could relax and enjoy her last month or so at Hogwarts with her friend, without worry over her impending results, which she planned to shove to the back of her mind. Now she could focus on the musical performance Dumbledore had so requested. They hadn't been able to put a lot of thought into song choices since OWLs had taken up so much of their time, but she was sure they could conjure something up. The only issue was whether or not Rachel and Finn would actually perform together. Both wished to do so on an individual basis, but with the other… Mercedes was uncertain. She hoped they would step out of their silent feud in order to join her in bidding Hogwarts farewell for another summer; all she wanted was for her friends to be united again, and share times together like they used to.<p>

It felt as though they hadn't had fun together in a lifetime, what with all the drama that had been in progress recently. It was like a never-ending tidal wave, bent on fracturing their friendships into tiny pieces, or at least allowing a dark cloud to hang over them.

They needed to pull themselves out of it; perhaps singing together could even help that.

Mercedes stopped short.

That was it; if they performed a song together – the right song - it could bring them all onto the same page to just appreciate one another again. Now all she had to do was find a way of getting them all to agree to such a collaboration.

Kurt was another issue; he seemed more likely to want to participate, seeing as he did not have a personal issue with any of them, but recently he had lost all enthusiasm for things since Blaine had left. He was deflated and if she wanted them all to have a fabulous send-off she would have to do something to perk him up a little more. She knew she couldn't rectify his funk completely, but she could try to better it slightly. And once she had Kurt fully on board, convincing the others would prove to be far easier.

Just then she spied a slim, dark haired figure across the hallway, she was leant against the stone wall, eyes closed and shoulders tense. The sight wrenched Mercedes out of her inner-thoughts and plots.

Mercedes bit her lip as she saw Santana looking in yet another state of distress. She knew it would not be well received, but she simply had to go over.

"Everything all right?"

Santana's eyes snapped open. They looked strained and tired. She obviously hadn't been sleeping well.

"What do _you_ want, Wheezy?" She snapped back, pushing herself off of the wall and folded her arms as she tried to walk away from the concerned Gryffindor.

"You seem kind of upset about something…" Mercedes said. She was sure it was something to do with how she had found the Slytherin crying beforehand in the girl's toilets. She walked with her.

"Look, I told you to butt out and mind your own business before, why would you think I would want it to be any different now?" Santana asked angrily, trying to shake of her pursuer.

"Hey, maybe you and I don't always see eye to eye on things. Maybe you've been rude to me and my friends for several years now, but that doesn't mean that I am okay with seeing someone so upset." Mercedes said, cutting Santana off halfway up the empty hallway.

"Just get away from me," Santana said, trying to push past her, but Mercedes stepped to the side to stop her once more.

"Listen," She said, eyes wide with concern and softness now. "I know I can't make you talk to me, but it is clear that something is bothering you and it also seems likely that you haven't talked to anyone about it. I realise that we don't know each other well, but I could help you."

"Nobody can help me." Santana said bluntly, refusing to look Mercedes in the eye.

"Well, think of it this way: if you don't ask for help you're never going to get it. If you do ask for help, okay, there's no guarantee that your problem will be solved, but there is a hell of a lot more chance than if you decide to ignore it and let it eat away at you. You don't have to tell me, just talk to someone, please… but I _am_ here if you feel the need..."

Mercedes gave Santana a meaningful look and patted her on the arm before stepping out of her way and carrying on along the corridor in the opposite direction. She had almost reached the end when-

"Wait!" Mercedes looked round to see Santana now facing her, arms still hugging tightly around her middle, forehead furrowed in confliction. She licked her lips nervously and jerked her head to one side, indicating towards an empty classroom that stood next to her. Mercedes smiled and nodded, making to follow the Slytherin girl inside.

* * *

><p>Finn and Quinn lay on the grass outside in the grounds of Hogwarts. They had just come out of their final examination, in which they had both been in the same room as each other, and decided to go out and relax, allowing the weight of the past few weeks to wash over them and dispense from their bodies.<p>

The sun was so bright that Finn had to cover his eyes with one hand as he turned to face the girl who lay beside him, casting a strangely shaped shadow across his face.

"How are things?" Finn asked her, still having to squint from the gaps of sunlight, which escaped through the partings of his fingers.

She didn't answer immediately, her eyes closed as her face was turned directly upwards, but even though her features were lit up dazzlingly, it seemed to darken at the question. "…Fine."

"That didn't sound very convincing…"

"Well, how do you expect me to feel, Finn?" Quinn snapped, suddenly, propping herself up onto her elbows, causing her robes to slip off of her right shoulder, revealing her white shit beneath.

He was a bit startled by the violent reaction from the usually cool Ravenclaw girl. "Hey, I'm sorry… I didn't mean to-"

"No, I'm sorry," Quinn said, all though she said it angrily still. "It's just… I'm just taking it out on you, that's all."

She lay back down rigidly, her hands now wrapped around her elbows in an attempt to comfort herself, her jaw pressed tightly together, staring skywards despite the blinding white light.

"You know you'd probably feel better if you talked to someone else about this stuff… I'm kind of useless with it all." Finn said, rolling over onto his side so he could face her and make it clear that he spoke in earnest.

She followed suit and gave him a small smile. "Who am I going to tell? It's not exactly something I want spread around."

"Your friends? They might be more understanding than you think."

Quinn snorted, "Oh, you think Santana wouldn't spread it around? Even if that girl _wanted _to keep a secret, her own mouth would render it completely impossible. There's no way."

"Brittany then?" Finn suggested.

"I don't know… both of those two have been acting funny lately. I don't want to worry them."

"It's probably just exam stress, and that's over now, so it's cool. I'm sure they wouldn't mind you worrying them with it… I'm sure they'd rather know."

Quinn shrugged, trying to put a stopper on the unwelcome conversation. "Maybe."

"Why won't you tell people?" Finn asked again, proving that her efforts had gone to no avail.

Quinn sat up a little irritated now; she pulled her arms through the sleeves of her robes as the heat became too stifling to bear, she threw it behind her and Finn a little too roughly. "Why do you keep insisting that I reveal it to the world?"

Finn stared up at her. She sure was on edge today. "I… I just thought it would make you feel better… I mean, I'm not saying you have to… I don't know."

"That's right Finn, you don't know. You have no idea." She said, folding her arms and refusing to look at him.

"I know more than most," He said in a quiet voice, looking up at the sky above him. Since when had his life gotten so complicated? He remembered that time not so long ago when his only trouble had been over whether or not they would win a Quidditch match. Then everything had exploded into new realms of insanity.

Quinn shot daggers at him. "Don't think I don't know what your motivation behind me spewing all is."

Finn's brow furrowed and he sat up next to her. "What do you mean?" He asked, genuinely puzzled by the remark.

"You think that if I tell people then you will get Rachel back." Quinn said simply. She stated it as fact, however there was no more anger in her voice than there had been previously.

Finn hesitated for a moment, choosing his words carefully. "Okay, first of all it wouldn't be getting her back as I never had her in the first place-" He corrected but hurriedly continued; "-But you have it all wrong, that's not the reason why at all. Sure, yes, if she knew then maybe things between us would be easier, but it is no guarantee. She seems pretty settled how she is, and even if she weren't, that doesn't mean she would be with me. I have sort of accepted that now… I don't think me and her are on the cards anymore. Especially not her pack, anyway. And even if I thought differently, no way would I use that to make you do anything you don't want to. Believe it or not, I care about you outside the realms of the situation I have with Rachel. I want you to tell people because I think it will make your life better…and easier, but I get it if you don't want to then I won't make you."

He finished and lay back down, chest heaving after having poured out his frustrations and aggravations from her comment. He had never had a way with words, but he hoped that she took note of the ones he had just said. He did not like being labelled a bad guy when he had done nothing to deserve such a title. Why did people like Quinn and Rachel keep questioning his motives and actions? Why could girls never take anything at face value; they had to read into everything you said, did or didn't say or do. It got so damn confusing. It reminded him of a time where Kurt had remarked that all his problems were fuelled by girls. Looking back on it, he could see that was just a ploy to win him over onto his team, so to speak, but the boy had a point…

Quinn sighed, realising that she had perhaps been a little rash. She stayed upright, but turned towards the boy who lay beside her, smiling at his annoyed and thoughtful features. "Sorry… I'm just… I thought exams being over would make this more straightforward, but honestly, it just means that it's all I have to think about. That makes it worse."

Finn frowned, not really knowing what to say. He really wished that he wasn't so hopeless at these types of things. "You'll get through this."

Quinn twisted her fingers in her lap and bowed her head; "Mmm." She said, not really believing it.

"Hey, you know I'm always here if you need anything, anything at all."

"You're very sweet, Finn, but you know that there is only one thing that I want, even if I hate myself entirely for doing so." She said bitterly, still looking away from him, into the distance where a row of birds soared through the sky above the trees of the Forbidden Forest, making a triangular formation as their black wings spread out to their sides.

Finn nodded, even though she could not see it, "I know exactly what you mean…"

* * *

><p>Kurt was struggling again.<p>

He was struggling to keep a steady hand as he wrote the last line in his Herbology theory exam. He hated the blasted subject and had run out of his reserve of calm now; it being his final subject to complete.

The questions wouldn't go in and he felt himself trembling. He knew he was going to throw this and he knew there was nothing more he could do to rectify the situation.

He had managed to remain composed for the rest of his OWLs and was pretty sure he'd at least done a decent job, but he had reached the end of his tether and he could feel the temperature in the room rising. His stomach knotted and the airflow from his lungs to his throat to his nostrils and mouth seemed to be stifled and the breaths that passed through them became raspy.

He couldn't do it. He couldn't continue.

He would be dropping Herbology anyway next year; what was the point? A lot of things had lost reason to him recently and he had had enough. He just wanted it over so that he could lock himself away and hide for the rest of the year. He knew he was going to shut down and he knew it would be hell on his friends, but it was impossible to prevent.

He slammed the quill on the table, more aggressively than he had intended so that Sprout looked up, alarmed.

He scooped up his bag and stood in one swift motion. He found himself sprinting to the back of the hall before anyone could call out and ask him where he was going. He'd never have been able to supply an answer anyway.

He knew where he was going before the thought ever registered in his head.

He found himself out in the Hogwart's grounds and crossing over to the tower which led to the Owlery sooner than he had expected, as though the forces of the world drove him to where he could feel Blaine's presence the strongest. The fact that he had spent so many nights there over his time at Hogwarts seemed to emanate around the room, sink into the bricks of the tower and rise from the floorboards. It was where he had gone to be sad, where he had the deepest emotional connection to a place in the castle and where Kurt could go now and simply shut his eyes and try and cling onto any faint sensation of the older Gryffindor being near to him once more.

So he walked up the stone steps and thought for the thousandth time over the things he wished he had said, and things he wish he could say to the boy his body ached for. To apologise, to thank and to confess…

_I am finding out that maybe I was wrong_

_That I've fallen down and I can't do this alone_

He paused as he reached the entrance to the enclosed place that held such powerful emotions locked within it, and significance of it to the boy he adored. He held his breath as he stepped onto the floor where Blaine's feet had been placed numerous times, his imprint drummed into the wooden panels there.

_Stay with me, this is what I need, please?_

_Sing us a song and we'll sing it back to you_

_We could sing our own but what would it be without you?_

_I am nothing now and it's been so long_

_Since I've heard the sound, the sound of my only hope_

Kurt thought back to when Blaine had sung to him in the courtyard. What was he supposed to have read into that? Why had he not done so at the time? There had been such meaning in Blaine's eyes… Was he just dense to see what exactly that had been? Or just unable to accept the possibility that it was precisely what he had desired to see for so long? Had he been too afraid to read that in his eyes, his voice, his words? Had it been too much to imagine being true?

_This time I will be listening._

_Sing us a song and we'll sing it back to you_

_We could sing our own but what would it be without you?_

_This heart, it beats, beats for only you_

_This heart, it beats, beats for only you_

_This heart, it beats, beats for only you_

_My heart is yours_

He felt his knees shake as he sat at on the bench that Blaine had once found him sitting alone at. Where he had come to offer him light at a time when he had seen nothing but darkness. A darkness that seemed to be creeping back into his life now, no matter how hard he tried to fight against it.

He leant over and tried to breathe easily — a task that proved to be impossible. Yet he continued to sing:

_This heart, it beats, beats for only you_

_My heart is yours_

_(My heart, it beats for you)_

_This heart, it beats, beats for only you (It beats, beats for only you)_

_My heart is yours (My heart is yours)_

_This heart, it beats, beats for only you _

_My heart, my heart is yours _

_My heart is yours_

_My heart is yours_

_My heart is…_

And then the tears falling from his eyes became too much to handle.

* * *

><p>Mercedes sat for a while, watching the girl who sat opposite her, fresh tears were streaking her cheeks as she angrily wiped them away, ashamed at her display of weakness and vulnerability.<p>

Mercedes had no idea what to do in this position; perhaps she had stuck her nose too far into Santana's business.

"This is stupid," Santana said grumpily, as she ran a hand through her sleek black hair and scrunched up her face distastefully out of embarrassment.

"No, it isn't," Mercedes assured her, trying to find some way to make her voice sound more emphatic as she tried to mull over what had just been said to her.

Santana shook her head and rolled her eyes, "No, it's ridiculous. I mean, what is the big deal? You know I'm probably just on some weird OWLs comedown. Maybe I've gone delirious or something."

"Santana, don't try to belittle what it is you're going through at the moment. Figuring out something as huge as being a lesbian is-"

Santana suddenly shot to her feet and took an aggressive step towards Mercedes. "Hey, just because I told you a couple of things doesn't mean you can go around sticking labels on me."

Mercedes was so shocked by this sudden alteration of mood and character that she leant back in her chair to avoid the angry Hispanic girl before her.

"What?... I wasn't… I mean… What you just said…?" Mercedes found herself stammering under her impenetrable glare that struck a string of flame between her eyes and Mercedes'.

"Just because I think I have feelings for a girl doesn't make me a lesbian." Santana spat.

"So… you're bi?"

"No."

"So you don't really like Brittany? You're straight?"

"No. Shut up, Wheezy. I'm not anything."

"Okay, _now_ I am confused. I thought this was like you coming out or something?" Mercedes said, not being able to compare the thunderous creature before her with the timid one who had just opened up to her completely only moments ago.

"Did I say that?" Santana snarled.

"No, but… I just thought…"

"Well, you thought wrong. Listen, this was all just stupid, like I just said. Forget I told you anything." Santana began to sling her bag over her shoulder in preparation to go.

Mercedes stood up. "Wait, Santana, come on. Okay, I get it; you're confused about everything. That's normal, right? You don't know who you are just yet, and that's fine, but you can't just run away from it now that you've told me all of this."

Santana rounded on Mercedes just as she was about to exit through the door.

"Let me make this clear: this conversation _never _happened. If I hear about this from anyone, meaning you told people, I will bring you down so bad; you won't even believe it happened. I have mad fighting skills, so you best not mess with me, got it? You may have tricked me into saying some rubbish about whatever, but it's nothing. Forget all of it, I didn't mean any of it. In fact, I just said it all to wind you up, and you're just stupid enough to fall for it. Yeah. That isn't my fault. Okay, so I've had my fun and now you know, so just drop it. Don't try to bring this up again, either. I'm bored of this little charade now. Actually, just don't talk to me at all, got it?"

And with that she turned and stalked out of the empty classroom, slamming the door as she went. Mercedes whispered Lumos and the darkened room filled with the light form the tip of her wand. She sighed and thought back over the recent conversation. One thing was for sure: that girl needed help. How she could possibly give her that, however, after she had proved so reluctant… Now that would be a task and a half.

Perhaps Santana was right to ask her not to meddle in her affairs — she was clearly not ready to come to terms with it yet, and Mercedes didn't believe it to be right, or her place, to force her.

Instead she would have to address a slightly easier, yet still perplexing issue: getting everyone to sing together. She mulled it over for a while and then remembered something that Trent had let slip to her a while back when they had hounded her about Blaine. Her heart quickly leapt with joy at the idea and she rushed over to the door where Santana had previously exited, ready to go and see a few 6th Years to help stage an ambush on her gloomy best friends.

* * *

><p>Kurt thumbed though the contents of one rack in Gladrags Wizardwears. Solitary trips to Hogsmeade had helped him pass away the days a little more easily now that the exams had ceased and he had nothing else to distract him from the dull ache that still resided in his chest. It was as though tiny fists had clenched each corner of his heart and were trying to pull it so that it split down the middle, and wrench it from his ribcage viciously.<p>

Shopping usually helped, but nothing here seemed to be appealing to him today. Only a few things would he care to adapt to make them his own. He decided to purchase them anyway, they were far from perfect, but perhaps the task of replenishing them to stylistic beauty would be another diversion of his mind in order to throw off more depressing matters.

He looked up and caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror that stood behind the stand he had been searching through.

His eyes had dark circles beneath them, they stood out strikingly from his pale skin.

He bit his lip. He knew that he had not been sleeping well lately, always on the edge of a slumber, never managing to fully establish his rem pattern — something he had read to be very important. Separation from Blaine seemed not only bad for his emotions, but also his health, and now apparently his skincare routine…

Kurt sighed heavily and then turned around, the garments in his hand ready to be bought.

However, when he looked out at the shop he noticed that the shopkeeper was no longer present. In fact, the whole place was deserted.

Then, all of a sudden, four figures stepped out from behind the counter desk.

"Kurt, this is an ambush!" Declared Wes exuberantly.

Kurt looked between his face, then David's, then Trent's and lastly Mercedes'. He took a moment to collect himself before:

"Again?" Kurt asked, exasperated. He made eye contact with the newest, fourth member and shook his head sullenly, "I had thought better of you, Mercedes, at least."  
>The girl he addressed stepped forward. "I know you don't like this, Kurt, but I – We felt the need to do something."<p>

Kurt folded his arms defiantly and cocked his head to one side. "And what exactly did you do to the employees here?"

David chuckled. "Oh, we just paid for them to take a simultaneous lunch-break after a light Confunding. Worked like a charm."

He winked at the pun.

Kurt rolled his eyes and sat on one of the stools laid out to try on shoes. He clasped his hands around his knee. "Let's get this over with then."

"Kurt, we know you're upset about Blaine's departure," Trent began; Kurt averted his eyes at this. He had never discussed his feelings for Blaine with these three boys and he was unsure of how much they had suspected. Mercedes knew, and he could sense her eyes upon the side of his face that was visible, which immediately began to flush and the room become slightly more heated.

"But we feel that it is causing you to become way too isolated." David added softly.

"We don't want you pushing us away, Kurt." Said Mercedes, stepping forward to put a hand on his shoulder. He looked up into her gentle eyes and felt his own stinging with premature tears. "We know that you're hurting, we all are. It has been a tough few weeks." He could tell she was including them all so as not to single out his own misery as anything to be highlighted as an indication that his feelings towards Blaine were more than a friendship. For this he was thankful. "So, I think now is the best time for us to all band together."

"It's not like he was expelled," Wes added in a cheerful voice. "He will be back next year, in fact he will be with you more than ever — what with you being in the same year and all."

Kurt tried to ignore the suggestive tone behind Wes's voice and the giddy glances at his best friends. However, he could not deny that the thought filled Kurt with a lovely sensation — like someone had poured hot honey through him and the silky substance was swirling around his body, radiating out of his pores.

He said nothing in response, however.

"It's not the end of the world, Kurt." David supplied. "We're all upset, we all feel the empty void."

The ache in Kurt's heart seemed to widen and spread at the mention of it, expelling the honeyed wonder that had filled him just moments ago.

"But we have to just get along with things. There's still the abundance of beauty at Hogwarts to keep us all preoccupied." Trent said, smiling rather wistfully as he looked out of the window where the castle was just visible beyond a row of trees.

"Besides, we need your help… I need your help." Mercedes said, looking at Kurt with a concerned expression that caused him to raise an eyebrow.

"Regarding?"

"Finn and Rachel." Mercedes said, causing Kurt's mouth to open slightly in understanding as if to mouth the word: "oh", nodding his head once and looking to one side, inwardly sighing at the pair of them. "I want us all to be happy again, and enjoy one another's company like we used to."

"I'm not sure that is going to be entirely possible," Kurt said, wrinkling his nose as he contemplated an attempt at reuniting their other two best friends - they were beyond the realms of reason.

"No harm trying," David chipped in. "Mercedes just wants all of her friends back, would you deny her that?"

Kurt looked back at the girl stood before him. "No… Or at least, I wouldn't want to. I'm sorry, Mercedes, I know I haven't been the best of companions recently…"

"It's okay, Kurt, nobody blames you," She answered quickly. "I just hope that you can find it within yourself to put aside your dampened thoughts and feelings, however difficult, and help me in getting everyone together again. You know I would never ask anyone else to do the job… and I've missed you, Kurt. I hate seeing you this way."

Kurt twisted his hands in his lap, his eyelashes beginning to moisten slightly. He turned his voice to a whisper so that only she could hear; "I find it hard not to think about it."

Mercedes sat down beside him and placed her hand on his upper back comfortingly. "I know you do, but perhaps this could prove a good distraction, and it would be good for all of us if we manage it."

"I do want Finn and Rachel back on talking terms," Kurt admitted. "And I do like planning… even if I would prefer it to be some kind of ceremony or function where I can decorate instead of interrogate."

The three boys chuckled and Mercedes smiled at Kurt's old flare seeping through him once again, simmering like the expanding flame of a new Phoenix.

"Well, once you have your brother and that weird little bouncy girl on board, you could always plan on how you'll do up the Great Hall for your performance," Wes said brightly.

Kurt looked up at him and smiled crookedly. "Now there's a way to convince me. I had forgotten about that."

It was true; his thoughts about Blaine had been so all-consuming that Dumbledore's request had completely slipped his mind. Thinking of it again, however, made his insides flutter with anticipation at the idea of being able to publically perform in front of the school. Singing something asides from disheartened solos could be just what he needed right now.

"So Kurt, are you in?" David asked excitedly.

"Are we going to be staging yet another ambush?" Kurt asked a little warily.

"But of course," Wes said. "What else are we meant to do with our time now that we have no Blaine to constantly mock? Seriously, my days have become _so_ much less entertaining."

"He gets so irate about things." Trent added, giggling.

"Yeah, and his face goes all red and scrunched up, it's hilarious." David contributed to the snickers.

"And his voice goes so high when he gets defensive and offended. Classic times." Wes said.

"Crazy days."

Kurt watched them all for a second in silence, his eyebrows curved, and eyes squinted and lip pulled up at one side, as he looked a little perturbed by their strange wistful memories.

He hesitated for a moment; it probably would be better for him to stop sulking, if not for Mercedes and the others, but for himself. Being this negative all the time was not good for anyone and could hardly end in any productive result. Besides, he was bringing everyone else down in the dumps with him, which was far from his intention. Blaine wouldn't want him to be so insulated, he was sure, not that he really knew what was going on with the 6th Year boy anymore… Still, he needed to pull himself out of his pit of despair, even he could realise when melodrama had reached its limit before it just became pathetic. It was time for a change.

"…Okay…I'm in," He said finally. "… At least I won't be on the receiving end of it this time."

The four of them grinned at him. One down. Two to go.

* * *

><p>Hello Readers!<p>

So, I know this took me a few days, and I know it gets a tad depressing and has an absence of Klaine loveliness, but I want you to bear with me. Why? Because in the next chapter (near the end, but you have to read it all!) there will be something that I think will make you feel much better. Teehee. Am I taunting you? Okay, I shall stop. This chapter is long at least, and has lots in it. Where are my Brittana lovers? Or Santittany? I have to agree with Ian, the latter IS funnier! Drama, drama, drama. Please stay tuned, and keep reviewing – they make me so happy! Love you guys!


	16. Chapter 16: Move Along

Chapter Sixteen: Move Along

(Songs: Move Along – The All American Rejects)

Hello Readers!

So, I know that many of you were upset about my decision to suspend Blaine, but I am hoping that the importance of that is slowly being revealed to you. Also, it has given me a great excuse to do what inspired this whole story for me. One half of that is detailed at the end of this chapter, then the other half in the next. I am sure you'll be able to tell what that is when you read it, and I shall keep my fingers crossed, praying that you will like it and not hate me.

I swear; there will be a lot more cuteness coming you way. Maybe even sickeningly so. But a lot of angst as well. Because everybody likes angst. Well… I do, so get used to it!

I've loved hearing from you all, and I hope that you will keep it coming. Thanks for all the kind words and I hope that I can do them justice!

* * *

><p>Rachel and Finn sat with their arms folded and bodies angled as far away from the other as they could manage in the small space. They were in one of the smaller cubbies of the Library and five stern figures stood across the exit, so that the reluctant and irritated pair could not depart without having to break their barricade.<p>

"You promised me Barbara." Rachel said, positively fuming about her current predicament and vicinity.

"Rachel, the fact that you genuinely believed that she would be in the Hogwarts Library proves that you deserve to be tricked," Kurt replied, arms also folded, but with one hand propped up so that it rested delicately on his cheek, and a permanent look of sarcasm fixed on his features as he viewed the ridiculous duo.

The short brunette scowled and looked away from him.

"Errr… Why are we in the library?" Finn asked, obviously less angry than the girl beside him - more confused - but still suitably unhappy and displeased with them all.

"Because this way you two can't end up shouting at each other and we can all be civilised." David said, clasping his hands behind his back.

"I don't want to be civilised," Rachel snapped.

"Your maturity continues to astound me." Kurt said flatly.

She threw her hands up in the air, turning towards them all now, in spite of her desire to be directed as far away from Finn as possible.

"You can't just corner us and expect us to get along! I have free will you know, and you can't make me want to spend time with him." She hissed.

"Not that I'm surprised," Finn said, allowing himself to look at her in order to direct his snide comment. "But you could at least _try_ to act as though I am here, and that you have some consideration for other people's feelings."

"Oh, don't act like such a flaming martyr, Finn," She spat.

"Hey, I may not know what that is, but I'm pretty sure I don't want to be called it," Finn said, earning sceptical glances from the others which he seemed oblivious to.

"All right, you two, cut it out," Mercedes said firmly, still not raising her voice above the approved level of Madame Pince.

"We hardly brought you here to listen to your arguments." Kurt added. "We are not even asking you to talk to one an other just yet. We want you to hear us out and then you can decide for yourselves what action you will take."

"We only ask that you listen to what we have to say," Trent added.

"If you care about our friendships, not only your own, then you will allow us to do so." Mercedes said, hands on her hips as she stood above them.

The others all nodded.

"Why do I feel like I'm under investigation…?" Finn said, looking up at them all — being below their faces was unfamiliar territory to him as he sat down and they remained standing.

"Fine. Say your bit, but I won't guarantee that I will accept any terms you extend," Rachel said, bitterly glancing at Finn and then seeming to hate herself for having succumbed to the weakness of acknowledging his presence.

"Kurt," David said, gesturing before them for Kurt to step forward to say his piece. He looked defiantly between the two of them; hands held tight in front of him, his stance well grounded as he spoke with conviction:

"You know that we care very much for the both of you, even when you decide to be impossibly difficult or, to my own personal distaste, choose to dress to an inadequate standard and limiting yourself to knitted sweaters or sports jackets… Despite these faults, we stick by you, and we're not about to change that.  
>"You two have had your differences lately, not that we need to get into the ins and outs of it all, but do you not remember the times when we were all content to just hang out with one another? Do you not remember how much better it was then? I know you both <em>feel <em>as though you have your reasons, but are they so much that you cannot even _consider_ reconciling in the hopes of getting those times back, and in allowing the rest of us to share in that as well? Is it too much to ask?  
>"Look, I'm not insisting that you to just go back to the way you were, I know it is not that easy, but you could at least attempt to be civil, for our sakes if not your own. You could try and see if you could stand to be around one another. I just don't think it is worth all this strife, especially now that we are soon to break up from Hogwarts – why ruin these last few weeks? Can we not allow them to be something we can all treasure, instead of look back on and regret? I for one would like something to round off this year positively, and my hope would be that you would both wish to join me on this.<br>"Rachel, we may not always see eye to eye, agree on anything, or even be able to go a day without insulting one another most of the time – as this intervention has proven — but, though I hate to admit it, I care for you very much and I would like to feel as though I can actually talk to you beyond your dormitory door. I know you're with Jesse and that's fine, but you have friends who want to spend time with you too. Don't turn your back on that because things have become slightly awkward.  
>"Finn, you're my brother and I support you 100%, but this has gone too far, you're making us push Rachel away, you're making her feel unwelcome and after our years of friendship that just isn't fair. I know you're angry and hurt, but sooner or later you just have to learn to live with one another, because quite frankly, you're driving me insane."<p>

Kurt finished and stepped backwards, allowing Mercedes to move forwards now.

"Kurt has pretty much summed up how I feel as well about the situation. I know that all of you, including Kurt, have had your fair share of dramas this year, and I have sat back… mostly silently… and allowed you to deal with that and be an ear to listen when required. But I am done with being so passive – it isn't me and I don't wish it to be. This has gone far enough. Whatever you two do or do not feel for each other right now isn't the issue here – especially as it seems likely that you won't work it out any time soon. Rachel is with Jesse now, all though yeah we can accept this; you _do_ need to unglue yourself from him at some point.  
>"I don't mean to be harsh, but this is not world war three, okay? There's no need for such sparring between the both of you. If you're true friends of ours then you will want to get up on that stage with me and Kurt in a couple of weeks and sing with us. You will want to be a part of that and send off the year in the way it should. We have been given a golden opportunity and I know for one that neither of you are the kinds of people who neglect such branches that have been so graciously extended.<br>"Rachel, I will regret saying so, but we need your voice. It is astounding and not even I can deny that, all though past this room I will do my best to do so to everyone we come into contact with regardless. And Finn, I mean to be honest, we are in desperate need of your dance moves."

She grinned at the Keeper and he returned a genuine smile unwillingly.

Wes stepped forward. "None of us really know you that well, but these guys seem to make some kind of sense, and they think you're all right. Plus, you two do need to just pull yourselves together and take one for the team. Else you're just acting like Garfield on a Monday."

Rachel and Finn had been patient, respecting their friend's wishes, but now their speeches appeared to have come to a close. At several points the both of them had opened their mouths, ready to make a quick remark, counteracting their friend's statements, but now they sat silently.

Finn glanced to his right where Rachel sat and she was soon to return the look. They smiled sadly at one another, sighing deeply before turning back to the five people before them.

"I'll sing with you guys," Finn said.

"As will I," Rachel agreed. "I won't make any promises to say that it will change anything, but I will try my best, and we shall see how it goes."

Kurt and Mercedes exchanged a private glance of their own. They then looked around and said in unison: "It's a start."

* * *

><p>"Nervous?" Mercedes whispered to Kurt as they watched the students file in. They were sat on a row of chairs next to the teacher's table, staring out at the Great Hall, having to go on to perform once every Hogwarts pupil was seated.<p>

Kurt wiped his sweaty hands on his knees and nodded, unable to speak. He loved to sing and longed to be a star, but that didn't shield him from stage fright completely.

"You'll do fine," Mercedes assured him.

Kurt grinned.

"I know I will. The song you chose is perfect, Mercedes," He told her in a whisper, glancing over at Rachel and Finn who were sat uncomfortably next to each other. "Do you think they'll pay attention to it?"

"Here's hoping," Mercedes said, sighing a little.

Kurt smiled and tilted his head towards hers. "Hey, even if they insist on being as irritating as always, you still have me, right?"

Mercedes beamed at him. "I suppose so."

Kurt nudged her playfully. "And I'm better than them anyway, right?"

She laughed, "Damn right."

He put up his hand and she wiggled her fingers against his in their mimic of the lame, cool-guy handshake. Kurt didn't feel so anxious anymore. It was just like singing with his friends normally when messing about. He could just relax and enjoy himself with the added bonus of showing off a little and giving vibrancy to their performance like only he knew how.

The students had all taken their seats now and Dumbledore stood to make a speech, stifling the whispers and stares up at the four Gryffindors immediately, as he did so:

"Welcome, everyone." He said loudly, his voice sweeping the surroundings in calm dominance as every person in the room clung to his words. "Welcome to the last day of this year at Hogwarts. I should hope to see many of your faces back here next year, all though for some of you older students there are new places within the wizarding world for you to now go out and explore. I know that many of our students find the time away from this school, whether leaving it for good or merely for a bright long summer, to be sad when memories filter in and make us miss these wise walls. Yet I would ask you not to worry, for these times away from Hogwarts are indeed what make us appreciate it the most, and make us most eager to attend once we have returned – I would like to say it also makes you more eager to study, yet I shall not declare such a thing forthright." He smiled and a murmur of admiring laughter filled the hall, bubbling up through the room like champagne.  
>"Hogwarts is always a place where its students may return whenever they see fit, it is a place of comfort and a place of security, and I for one am proud that it is so, and proud to be headmaster of it.<br>"Now, many of you are on the edge of your seats in your desire to find out the results of the House Cup and, I am sure, to be permitted to tuck into your dinner. I do not wish to deprive you of these wishes for too much longer, but I have another treat for you all today. Sitting here are four of our 5th Year Gryffindor students, to whom I have had the pleasure of hearing their voices. After doing so, I thought it best to share their talents with you all."

He had a small glint in his eyes as he spoke of this, and it seemed that Blaine's theories of Dumbledore listening in all around Hogwarts were correct. Kurt felt a pang as he recalled Blaine's words and they flew around his head, the fluttering of each syllable like the beating of a pair of wings.

"So, without further ado, I shall allow them to sing to you all in a song to bid us farewell before we return to our normal proceedings. Many magical persons belittle the power of music in our world, and I see this to be a great pity, so I hope that you will all appreciate the gift of music, whether hearing it or harnessing it for your own purposes. Thank you, now sit back and open your ears."

The four of them stood up at this cue and stepped forward onto the platform before them. A row of students sat alongside the edge of the wall as well, all holding instruments in their hands. Professor Flitwick stood before them, on a podium, swishing a tiny conductor's stick. As he did so the music Mercedes had selected started up as she herself walked forward out of their line.

_Go ahead as you waste your days with thinking_

_When you fall, everyone sins_

_Another day and you've had your fill of sinking_

_With the life held in your_

Kurt stepped forward and placed his hand over Mercedes', the pair looked at one another and smiled widely, just before Kurt turned out to look at the sea of faces before them and sang the next lines in a high falsetto, contrasting to the original arrangement.

_Hands are shaking cold_

_These hands are meant to hold_

Rachel sprang forward alongside Mercedes on her other side, and then moving yet further forward, leaning towards the Hogwarts tables, hands outstretched as she did so.

_Speak to me, when all you got to keep is strong_

_Move along, move along like I know you do_

_And even when your hope is gone_

_Move along, move along just to make it through_

_Move along_

_Move along_

Finn walked up slowly and stood beside Rachel. They exchanged an awkward glance before averting their eyes, Finn shut his own and sang:

_So a day when you've lost yourself completely_

_Could be a night when your life ends_

_Such a heart that will lead you to deceiving_

_All the pain held in your_

It was Rachel's turn to sing the line and much to Finn's own surprise she put her hand in his. He looked down, a little startled, but as she relayed the lyrics she smiled up at him, indicating without direct conversation that she wished to put their quarrel behind them.

_Hands are shaking cold_

_Your hands are mine to hold_

Finn finally managed to break into a smile with the rest of them, just in time for the four of them to join together in unison.

_Speak to me, when all you got to keep is strong_

_Move along, move along like I know you do_

_And even when your hope is gone_

_Move along, move along just to make it through_

_Move along_

_Go on, go on, go on, go on_

They all joined hands together now, filling each of them with warmth as they felt untouchable when it came to their friendship; fear and worry and arguments could pass through their lives as easily as water in a river, but that did not mean it could break through the dam they had set up collectively to prevent it taking over. They stood together now, just as they had at the beginning of the year, and now that they had regained this strength, it was not about to be relinquished in a hurry.

_When everything is wrong we move along_

_Go on, go on, go on, go on_

_When everything is wrong, we move along_

_Along, along, along_

_When all you got to keep is strong_

_Move along, move along like I know you do_

_And even when your hope is gone_

_Move along, move along just to make it through_

Kurt stepped forward to deliver the long high notes in the most angelic fashion, which sent Goosebumps down all of their spines as well as many others in the Great Hall.

_Move along_

Finn and Mercedes carried on as Kurt stepped back again.

_Go on, go on, go on, go on_

Rachel delivered a gut-busting rendition of the penultimate line at a great volume but perfectly in tune and harmonizing with Mercedes and Finn's voices.

_Right back what is wrong_

Then they all spoke softly:

_We move along_

* * *

><p>Kurt could hear the doorbell ring inside the house, and he looked up at Finn who stood beside him, each boy with a trunk in their hand after Finn have drove them home once they had got off the train. His brother smiled down at him, but then the door before them was wrenched open and both were too busy being wrenched into a bone-breaking hug to be able to look at one another anymore.<p>

"Oh, I have missed you boys so much!" Carole exclaimed excitedly, still not allowing either of them to breathe as she embraced them. "How have you been? How was school? Did you get back okay? How did your friends get home? You didn't leave them alone, did you?"

"No… Mum, of course…we didn't" Finn managed to say, pulling back from her now. "They were fine, their parents were there to pick them up."

"Oh good," She said, beaming as she held onto both of his shoulders — a difficult feat considering their juxtaposed heights. She looked him up and down. "You look older."

Finn rolled his eyes: "You say that every time."

"Only because it is true, you're a growing boy. I bet you have had a lot of luck with the girls this year!" Finn squirmed at the comment and Carole just laughed. "You know I only joke, sweetheart!"

She turned to Kurt then and put a hand under his chin in a motherly manner. Kurt was still adjusting to having such a relationship back in his life, but he did really like Carole and had missed her dearly since they had been away. "You're just the same, Kurt, and you really must stop growing! Thank God, Finn's growth spurts seem to have ceased, but if you reach his height as well I don't know if I will be able to cope!"

Kurt chuckled, staring up at his brother's mammoth height. "I don't think you'll have to worry about that one, Carole."

She smiled warmly and squeezed his shoulder. "Let's hope not, now come inside! Here, I'll get your bags… No, Finn I can manage! ...Okay, fine, just take the other handle then!"

They bustled inside the tight entrance-way, trying to fit through both trunks with enormous difficulty, finding manoeuvres through the closely packed walls rather difficult.

Their parents, after their recent wedding, had banded together to put an extension on Kurt's house that he and his Dad had lived in on their own before, but the space was still tight, money not growing from trees anywhere nearby, and it was still quite an effort to fit everyone in. However, it was home and the larger number of people only made the place a lot cosier. Or so they would always claim.

The two boys smiled once they had finally been able to edge in through the doorway, looking around at the familiar setting. Kurt breathed in the scent that he knew so well and instantly felt relaxed. It was amazing that his home still had such a calming effect over him. Hogwarts was magical and beyond what dreams could ever conjure up, and while Kurt was there he never ceased to have waves of incredulity wash over him at the splendour of the castle. It was like a second home to him.

But here it was different; he knew every inch of the walls, floors and furniture; he knew every nook and cranny; every damaged ornament; every faulty utensil in the kitchen. He knew the exact step which was loose on the staircase and he knew the precise location of the bump by the bathroom door which made the surface uneven — all though this knowledge still didn't prevent him from tripping over it constantly, sending him flying into the sink.  
>Also, as beautiful as it was, Hogwarts did not have-<p>

"Hey!"

Burt appeared at the end of the corridor, his arms spread wide and a grin permanently fixed on his friendly features. He looked between the both of them, and Kurt could see a slight moisture rise in his father's tear ducts as he laid his eyes on his son.

Kurt could feel his own throat become choked with emotion as he looked upon the man he had so sorely missed. His rock. His world. Before he knew what he was doing he found that he had flown at Burt, wrapping his arms around his middle and hugging him tightly.  
>"Hey! Whoa there, buddy," Burt said, laughing deeply. "Miss me, did you?"<p>

"Like you wouldn't believe," Kurt said with utter sincerity.

Burt patted him on he head and pulled back for a moment. "Let's have a look at you."

"You're not going to comment on how I look older and taller, are you?" Kurt asked, wiping the tears away quickly as he half laughed and half sobbed.

"Well, I was gonna, but now you've made me feel like that would be too predictable!" Burt said, and then he looked over Kurt's shoulder. "Actually Finn, so do-"  
>"Yeah, mum already covered it for both of us," the taller boy interjected and they both grinned at the obvious nature of their parents.<p>

"Well, all right," Burt said, shaking his head and glancing at his wife, "I guess we just can't get anything right, ey?"

"Apparently not," She giggled. "Come on boys, I bet you would both like a drink after such a long journey!"

* * *

><p>"Are you going to tell Burt about…you know?" Finn asked Kurt in a hushed whisper, looking over his shoulder hastily before he did so.<br>They were in the kitchen, fetching some food to bring into the sitting room. There was some kind of a game on which they were all going to watch. It was not exactly Kurt's chosen form of entertainment, but in all honesty he was just grateful to be back, and was sure they would spend too much time talking for him to have to focus on the non-existent excuse for players all to be wearing stirrup-pants.

Kurt reached up into the top cupboard without looking at his concerned brother. "It isn't exactly my most preferred topics of conversation." He replied.

"I know, but you tell him everything."

Kurt brought down the bag of crisps he had found and then retrieved a bowl from the side. He shook his head. "I wouldn't even know where to begin."

"You can't keep him in the dark, Kurt, he would be so upset to find out from somebody else." Finn said in a low voice, leaning towards Kurt and wishing that his brother would look him in the eyes, rather than busy himself with the food arrangements.

Kurt bit his lip, wishing that he could find a way to avoid this conversation entirely. "It would make him upset to hear about it full-stop."

"He would rather hear it from you," Finn assured him.

Kurt closed his eyes and put down the jar he had been holding with a slight slam on the counter: "He is my Dad, okay? I'll sort it."

"Look, dude, I'm not trying to be pushy or anything…" Finn said quickly. "I… I just think that it would be for the best. I'm not saying _now, _just soon."

"What good will him knowing do?" Kurt asked, finally making eye-contact with Finn and giving him a pleading look. "Think what it could do to his heart. Besides, it will probably have all blown over by the time we go back to school."

"What if he hears about it from the teachers?"

"They don't know I had anything to do with it, they just think it was between him and Blaine." Kurt said, he was sure of this fact. Kurt had been there, but he was sure that if McGonagall had strongly suspected any involvement on his part whatsoever, then she would have asked to speak with him. She had not, and so he was positive that she just considered him another ordinary witness to the event.

"And if it carries on when we return?"

"It won't."  
>Kurt's response was instant, but Finn could detect the wavering in his voice. "See, you don't even believe that yourself," He hissed. "Please Kurt, you have to-"<p>

"He has to what?"

The two boys spun around instantaneously, as though they had been caught doing some kind of crime. When, in fact, the only thing they were visibly guilty of was having stopped setting out the food.

Burt folded his arms as he stood by the entrance of the kitchen, one eyebrow raised so that they could not see it under his forever-adorned baseball cap. "What are you two whispering about in here?"

"Nothing." They both said in unison of faked-innocence.

Burt stepped forward and they both glanced at one another, Kurt shooting slight daggers of warning at Finn, in case he had been planning on saying anything. Finn wasn't about to; he knew that he could not overstep the boundary between Kurt and his Dad.

"That didn't sound suspicious at all," Burt said sarcastically, looking at them curiously. "Someone care to tell me what it is Kurt has to do?"

Finn swallowed but did not reply, palms sweating as they gripped the table-top behind him.

"Kurt?" Burt fixed his eyes on his son's firmly, an authoritative tone to his voice.

"Singing." Kurt said quickly. "Finn and I… we were talking about singing."

Burt raised his other eyebrow now, and squared his footing to indicate that he was now well and truly intrigued as to where this was going. "Singing? Finn doesn't even sing, do you? Carole never mentioned it…"

"I didn't… Well, not really. Before. But I started to a bit, this year." Finn replied, jumping on the wagon Kurt had pulled out for him so they could ride away from the awkwardness.

"They do singing at Hogwarts now?" Burt asked, a little confused.

"Not officially, no, but some of us started to do it around and Dumbledore noticed and…" Kurt began, fading away. Finn picked up where he left off.

"And it's been really good… cool… And a lot of fun. We think they may do more of it next year, you know, bring people together and that."

Burt nodded slowly, still a bit puzzled by why the two of them had been discussing such a harmless topic like singing in hushed voices as though it were something to hide. Suddenly a spark of an idea hit him and his face brightened. "Oh!"

He walked out of the room for a second, leaving Finn and Kurt to now be the ones exchanging curious glances in his absence.

He strode back in again, however, this time clutching an envelope in his hand. "Speaking of bringing people together, this arrived for you yesterday." He held it out to Kurt who looked startled.

"Who is it from?" He asked, looking up at Burt rather than the envelope, a questioning tint in his eyes.

"Haven't the foggiest idea. I wasn't look, was I? It is addressed to you."

Kurt's brow furrowed. "I never get mail…" Then he looked down at the inscription on the outside.

He saw the slanted scrawl that outlined his name in clear, stylised letters. He had seen that writing many times before, across many pages of study material from a few of the months that he had recently spent at Hogwarts.

Kurt's heart hammered so hard in his chest that he felt as though it would burst through his sternum. He could feel his face growing hot and his stomach writhe in yearning for his hands to open the letter and reveal its contents.

But he couldn't do so here.

"May I be excused?" He managed to say a little breathlessly, looking up at his father who seemed oblivious to the emotional reaction Kurt had gained from the small envelope.

"Yeah, sure, just be back in time for kick-off."

Kurt nodded quickly, sure that words would fail him at this moment, as he side-stepped Finn and, once he had left the kitchen and was out of sight of the pair of them, practically sprinted down the stairs and bolted into his bedroom in the basement, shutting the door hastily behind him.

He almost tripped down the steps as he fumbled with the seal. Damn thing seemed to be super-glued shut, as if it wanted to build the suspense of what lay inside even more.

* * *

><p>Kurt fell down onto his bed, on his stomach, as he finally managed to tear the precious mode of communication open.<p>

He scanned the contents quickly, heart leaping before he realised he had not managed to take in a single word of Blaine's handwriting, so delicately displayed upon the parchment. He closed his eyes for a second and took a deep breath. He must read it slowly and carefully, it was of the upmost importance that he drink in every word that the 6th Year had written him:

_Dear Kurt,_

_I can't make this letter as long as I would like, as I only have a limited amount of time before my parents return. They have been so angry with me, and have not allowed me to write any letters to people from Hogwarts as a punishment for being suspended, otherwise I would have written to you sooner and I do hope that you receive this and that I did remember your address correctly. I think they will ease up on me soon, or at least I hope so; they have started to talk to me a bit more lately, so that is a good sign._

_I am so sorry Kurt. Unbelievably so. I wish I could find the words to describe to you how much I regret what I did because of how upset it made you. You were so angry with me, and I didn't even know how to respond. It was stupid; you were right, and I agree that I shouldn't have done it. But Kurt, as much as I know that it was wrong of me and as much as I hate myself for it because of how you reacted, if I had the chance to do it all again, I would. I don't blame you if you judge me for saying so, I know I shouldn't feel that way, but I do and I am not about to lie to you, Kurt. When he turned his wand on you, I just lost it. I can't even tell you what I was thinking at that moment; I don't think that I was. I responded reflexively, and I don't think I could have helped myself if I had wanted to._

_Are you okay now? Nothing hit you, did it? You seemed uninjured when I saw you, but you better have got yourself checked over anyway. I'm sorry that it put you in the path of danger — you've suffered enough at his hands and I would hate to think that I was responsible for any further hurt. I guess that I am at fault there, because I made you so angry with me, and I won't be able to forgive myself for that._

_Kurt, there are a lot of other things that I want to say to you, but I don't want to do so in a letter, so I will wait until we return to Hogwarts, if I can bear to hold it in till then. I know I will not forget it at the very least._

_Just, please write back to me to tell me if you're okay. I know that you are probably still furious, and that's fine, but it is driving me crazy that I cannot see how you are. Or know how your performance went, or your exams. Please say that you didn't allow this mess to get in the way of them? I pray that is not the case._

_I have to go now, as I just heard my parents outside, but I cannot stress enough how sorry I am, how much I care about you, and how much I want us to be okay. I need us to be okay, Kurt, I know that perhaps it is bit steep of me to ask, and selfish, and could possibly make you even angrier with me, but I do. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me, Kurt, because I know that if anyone has a heart possible to do so, it is yours. _

_Your friend,_

_Always,_

_Blaine. _

Kurt put one hand over his thudding heart, his fingertips gripping the soft fabric of his shirt as he breathed heavily, allowing his eyes to absorb each glorious word that was written before him.

He pressed the paper to his chest, willing it to sink into each fibre of his being so that it would never be able to be physically destroyed.

He felt as though every molecule of his body had the ability to sing out for all to hear. He felt himself glide upwards towards heaven, his soul swoop around the clouds.

He did not even make an attempt to quell the tears that sprinkled his cheeks, only focused on not allowing them to dampen the treasured parchment.

He felt the need to concentrate very hard on his breathing, and waited a long time for the pounding in his chest to slow to a pace appropriate for humans, rather than rabbits.

Then, without direct communication from his mind to his limbs, he found that he had sprung to his feet, racing through his drawers to find a parchment and quill.

He slapped the paper on his desk in his rush to respond. To talk to Blaine. Even if it was in a different format to what they were used to, it was still a form of contact: a way for them to keep up their all-consuming connection.

He knew that Blaine was okay. He was clearly under severe reprimand from his parents, understandably, but he was all right. The elation that this news brought him was indescribable. The only way that his being faltered was his knowledge of Blaine's sorrowfully inaccurate assumptions of how Kurt felt towards him at that moment, and Kurt could not correct these ridiculous conclusions faster.

* * *

><p>Stay tuned for Kurt's reply!<p>

See, I first had the idea for this story when I imagined what it would be like if Kurt and Blaine sent love letters to one another. So I wrote a draft of one and for some reason the idea came around about him being suspended from school because he fought Karofsky off, hence why they were writing to one another. Except, in my mind (which is forever preoccupied by Harry Potter) they were having a wizard's duel rather than a fistfight. Then it all sort of escalated into this fan fiction.

It's not over yet, however, as even though this was the initial idea, the story has become so much more than that, and will end up going beyond the plot involving Karofsky. But you'll just have to wait and see what that is!


	17. Chapter 17: Realisation

Chapter Seventeen: Realisation

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><p><strong>(Songs: Owl City – Vanilla Twilight. Again PLEASE listen to this song while reading the story. Honestly, if you don't know this song you are doing yourself an injustice. It is beautiful and represents so much that is beautiful about Klaine. Seriously. If you do this you will make me so happy, and yourself happy – because it will take your breath away. Especially if you imagine these two singing it… Outstanding.)<strong>

**.com/watch?v=eogTk770ZCc - NO EXCUSE! (end of youtube url, it won't post the beginning)**

* * *

><p>There was a tentative knock at his door.<p>

Blaine peeked through the hole that hid in the crook of his arm, which lay over his face in his position on the bed. He stretched out the arm, wand already gripped tightly in his hand, and flicked it towards the door, allowing it to unlock.

One tiny positive ray of light that seeped in through the darkness that had been his time at home thus far was that he was now 17, and able to use magic outside of school. It hadn't proved very useful, since he had spent the majority of his time in the confines of his room. You would think that this ability would mean that his break for freedom would be far more easily achieved, however this was not the case when you had two highly-trained Aurors as parents…

One of whom now strode in through the door, obviously the knock had been his mother's way of showing a common courtesy, rather than her being unable to enter of her own accord.

She sat on the edge of the bed when he did not look up from the arm that now covered his face once more.

"How are you feeling today?" She asked diligently, obviously being able to view his distress from a mile away.

"Super," He said bitterly.

She sighed and twirled her own wand around her fingers.

"I know you may think that your father and I have been unreasonable, Sweetheart, but we wanted you to realise the seriousness of your actions. It is unacceptable, Blaine, and if you wish to return to Hogwarts you will have to _seriously_ reconsider your priorities when it comes to the way you conduct yourself."

She did not speak angrily, this was not her way of scolding him; she was merely trying to push the ideals she deeply valued onto her son. She was afraid that recent events were an indication of worse things to come, that he was about to go off the rails and that a suspension meant it was only a matter of time before an expulsion.

He had tried to tell her otherwise, that this was a one off and that he had absolutely no future plans that meant a repeat of what had occurred to bring him back here so early this summer, but she seemed to still be racked with concern over the affair. The truth was that she had feared such a rebellion or outburst ever since her first-born son had disappeared, knowing the possible impact such an event could have on his younger sibling.

"I know, mum." He said; his voice obstructed by the blocking limb. She swished her wand so that his arm fell to his side instead.

"Please speak to me properly, darling."

Blaine propped himself up on his elbows and finally looked at her.

She was a delicate looking woman, whose features looked as though they may have once been very beautiful, and still were in a way; but it was clearly written across her face — the grievances she had experienced in recent years. Nothing leaves a greater scar than the love a mother has for her son, especially when one is taken so cruelly from her. Mrs Anderson's long brown hair, which strikingly contrasted her pale skin, was coiled up into a loose bun a top her head, a few strands hanging down beside her face, gently brushing her cheeks. The subtle streaks of grey, which had become more prominent over the last several years, were scattered within it. She was quite ethereal looking, so that based on appearances you would not believe her capable of fighting all the dark wizards that she did. Or you wouldn't think so, until you looked into her blazing amber eyes, which told a whole other story. Even after all the upset and turmoil, a great deal of passion burned within her, perhaps some of it being a product of her great losses, but it was there all the same.

She rested one thin-fingered hand against his forehead, the cool touch making him feel a bit more at ease.

"I'm sorry. I'm just… feeling a bit claustrophobic, that's all." He muttered.

"We are hardly keeping you here by force darling, you shan't be grounded for much longer, another week, but we both feel that the punishment is apt. I hardly think you can blame us for that, due to the circumstances."

"Can I not just go away for a couple of days?" Blaine asked, hopefully. His grounding had already subsided somewhat, and he wondered what else he could push for. Perhaps he was trying his luck.

"Where do you want to go for two days?"

"…North." Blaine confessed vaguely.

His mother arched a perfectly shaped eyebrow. "And what exactly is northbound, Blaine?"

"Nothing," Blaine lied, settling back down onto the bed and putting his hands over his face, trying to rub away the tiredness from it, as well as the image of dazzling blue eyes, which were impossible to physically remove no matter how hard he tried.

He knew that his mother would suspect, just as she never missed a beat with anything he said or did, but she wouldn't know the specifics, and he knew by now that she would not pry too deeply unless she felt a severe need to know.

"I'm afraid that I doubt your father will approve, Sweetie." She told him.

Blaine scoffed. "Figures."

She frowned down at him. "Don't speak like that, darling. You know you mean the world to your father."

Blaine did not reply to this, and he could hear the note in his mother's voice that indicated that not even she believed wholly in the words she had just spoken.

"Are you going to come down for dinner in a moment?" She asked.

"I'm not particularly hungry… but thanks anyway."

She sighed heavily as she leant forward to take one of his hands. Blaine looked up into her face.

"Please don't push me away, Blaine. I know that what happened isn't you and I do wish that you wouldn't be so private about everything. Is there something else on your mind?"

_Yes_.

"No." Blaine said.

"Nothing that has anything to do with why you have been here the last month or so instead of at school?" She asked knowingly.

_Absolutely_.

"No."

"Nothing that is making you sit in a darkened room for hours on end, with the curtains drawn, when there are so many beautiful summers days passing by you?"

_One specific thing actually, and technically, it rained yesterday._

"No."

"Nobody who is perhaps writing a reply to that letter you sent the other day when we were at the Grandorns'?"

Blaine swallowed as he looked at her wildly.

His mother laughed lightly and gave her son an exasperated look. "Honestly darling, I have the eyes and ears of Dumbledore in this house, you should know that by now." She laughed a little; "Well, perhaps they are not quite _that _acute, but they work pretty well."

"Does-"

"No, your father has not realised, and how about we keep it that way, shall we?" She said a little sternly, standing up now and heading over to Blaine's bedroom door.

He simply nodded, heart sinking as his thoughts turned once again to his other parent, but relief flooding through him now that he knew his mother was beginning to become more lenient towards the rules.

She nodded towards the window frame. "Well, whoever it was who received your letter… I think you've gotten your wish."

As his mother shut the door behind her, Blaine looked in the direction she had gestured, through the windowpane, only to see a tiny tawny owl stand out against the veil of night sky, flying towards the house.

He scrambled to his feet, a weird sensation flushing through his body and causing his hands to tremble slightly as they hung by his sides. He became very aware of his dry throat and queasy feeling in his stomach as he watched the bird approach.

He ran over to the window, unthinkingly, his feet leading him before his mind could catch up with them. His hand fumbled terribly with the latch as his fingers continued to twitch, full of anticipation.

He managed to swing open the window just in time for Pavarotti to swoop in and perch on the back of his chair.

He ignored the window, which was now allowing in a cool gush of the night's air, and jumped forwards toward the owl. Pavarotti's yellow eyes glinted and he hooted as his neck extended, offering the letter eagerly.

Blaine took it hungrily, and sat on the edge of his bed, trying to collect his thoughts as he slowly peeled open the letter, terrified that he may tear it.

He was half desperate to read the contents, and half filled with dread. What if it was merely Kurt writing to tell him to leave him alone? Never to write again? Blaine gulped down the bad taste that it brought to his mouth and shook his head:

Whatever the reply, he simply had to know.

_Dear Blaine,_

_I am not sure if Pavarotti knows where you live. I'm sure he has been able to figure it out, but I hope that I have not risked you not receiving my response._

_Could you stop being incredibly ridiculous for just one moment? _

_Of__ course__ I do not hate you. Not even close, Blaine, not even a little bit. I know I was angry, but it was only momentary. I was so stunned by everything that happened that I couldn't get a hold on my emotions and I lashed out unthinkingly. _

_Stop saying sorry! I am the one who should be, because now you have spent the last month thinking that our friendship is over. Far from it. I wouldn't lose it for the world, Blaine; I hope you know that. I can't imagine you ever doing anything to eradicate it permanently. That really doesn't seem possible._

_I had no idea they would usher you out of the castle so soon, otherwise I would have never said those things to you. Instead I would have thanked you. I still can't believe you did that, but for different reasons now. Now that I have given it a true moment's thought. I regretted my words to you as soon as I left that courtyard. How could I have been so harsh? You, Blaine - you were amazing. _

_Nobody has ever stood up for me the way that you did. I cannot even convey to you how much I appreciate what you did. What you did then, and what you have done for me this year. I can't imagine how the last few months would have been for me if I hadn't had you by my side. I can't even fully comprehend it now, I can't think why you would do all of that for me — what you almost jeopardised in order to protect me… _

_So no, I won't ever be able to fully understand your motivations, but by no means do I hold them against you in any way! Quite the opposite. I wish I could find a more constructive way of telling you this, and how much I wish to repay you for all of it. I owe you so much, Blaine, more than I can say._

_I assure you that I am in perfect health — you made sure of that yourself. Nothing even grazed my skin, I promise. What about you? Did they at least heal your arm before they sent you away? Or did you parents? _

_I hope they haven't been treating you too badly. I know they're bound to have freaked out a little. Did you tell them what happened? I haven't said anything to my Dad yet; I'm not sure what to say to him. I don't think I can bear to picture his face when he hears about it all. I'm not sure I could do that to him, but Finn has been telling me that I have to. What would you do? Maybe I should just wait and see how things are next year. He shouldn't bother us again, right? It would be far too stupid to try anything like that again. Although, I still have no idea what could have possibly provoked him to do it this time._

_I know that he will be in all of my classes now; I think the only thing that makes me feel better about that is the fact that you will be there with me as well. You have no idea how much comfort that brings me. No idea._

_My exams went fine – quit worrying! If I do badly in them it will only be my fault, it has nothing to do with you, okay? Okay? Anyway, I am pretty confident that I at least passed them all, so no fear._

_The performance was incredible — the only down side was that you were not there to see it! Mercedes and I actually managed to get Rachel and Finn on board to sing with us and they did so beautifully — as did I, naturally.  
>The last week at Hogwarts was wonderful because it was as though we were our old selves again. Well, not exactly, there were still occasional awkward moments, especially when Jesse was around — or Quinn - but they're making an effort and I take that to be progress. Even Rachel, in fact she has been surprisingly mature about everything since (yes, I was surprised too). She never ceases to be annoying, however, she wore a pant-suit on the train. <em>

_A pant-suit. _

_Who does that? It was bright blue and… Eurgh, you know what? I'm not even going to lower myself in order to describe it. Just, trust me: it was an abomination. I will never be able to forgive her for that._

_There is nothing that I have to forgive you for though, Blaine, nothing at all. You have given me so much and, yes, I still think that what you did was idiotic, but only because it meant that it hurt your position at Hogwarts, not because it hurt me. Maybe you wouldn't take back your actions, but I would have wanted you to because you put yourself in such danger by doing it. I think that is more something that you have to forgive yourself for, however, not me. Oh, and your parents - you may need to ask for their forgiveness as well._

_Oh Blaine, there are so many things that I wish to say to you too. That I __need__ to say. But I agree, even though I am presently getting a thrill off of the archaic sentiment that presents itself in these lovely letters, some things should be saved for saying to another person's face. If only you didn't live so far away, then maybe we could have met up beforehand. Well, we could probably reach each other through magical means, rather than muggle transport, but I am willing to bet your parents aren't going to be best pleased with you seeing your Hogwarts friends if you aren't even supposed to write to them._

_I shall just have to wait until the Hogwarts Express in September. That feels so long away, doesn't it? So very far in the future…_

_I do hope that you are okay Blaine, or as okay as you can be considering the circumstances, and that your parents let up soon.  
>And I can't wait to see you again.<em>

_Your friend, also always (even if you find it hard to believe for some absurd reason)._

_Kurt.  
><em>

Blaine had to put a hand over his mouth to stop himself from letting out what he couldn't tell would be a sob or a yell of delight. Warm tears brimmed his eyes and touched his eyelashes before he gave a thought to pulling them back. He found himself standing.

He wanted to do more than that.

He wanted to run, to dance, and to sing. If he ever felt like he had any sort of an ability to fly without a broomstick, it was now. Gravity didn't feel as though it could possibly have an effect on him at that moment. He took his hand down from his mouth only to punch the air slightly, doing so with utter elation, he allowed his hand to dive upwards and then reach into his dark curls in one swift motion.

He wasn't angry.

Kurt didn't hate him.

He had said… such beautiful, wondrous things. Things that Blaine knew he would be obsessing over for weeks to come, if not months or years. He could hardly keep his thoughts contained into a coherent string. They darted around madly, like bolts of electricity, which also seemed to be shooting through his entire body and across his heart when he remembered his words, his face, his touch…

Blaine fell backwards onto his bed, allowing his body to completely relax as he did so, he put his hands to his face, still finding it impossible to process the relief, shock, awe and euphoria that had overcome him due to the news that he and Kurt were okay again.

Bliss, that thought was pure, unquestionable bliss.

He even found himself laughing a little, he couldn't control it; the feeling had bubbled up from his gut and rose through his throat to be produced out from his lips. He had to clamp a hand over his mouth to try and prevent it.

He rolled over onto his side as he smoothed out the corners of the parchment that still lay on his bed. He wanted every inch of it to be as pristine and gorgeous as the words written upon it — and the one who had written them.

He knew that the time they would now be forced to spend apart would be excruciating. He knew that the numb feeling he had been experiencing since leaving Hogwarts would maintain in Kurt's absence, even if the letter had lessened it slightly. He knew that he would be counting down the days, the hours, the minutes, until they were reunited. And now, after receiving the letter, after reacting the way he had to what shone out of that page, he knew how he felt about Kurt, and how he would almost certainly always feel. He knew that he would be stupid not to feel it, and that he was stupid for not having fully realised it until now.

He also knew that he would not be able to stop thinking about Kurt until they would meet again, and at that moment he thought of him, wondering if he did, or possibly could, reciprocate Blaine's own intense feelings.

The voice inside Blaine's head told him that it was probably only a faint dream, but even so just thinking of what Kurt could be doing at that moment could occupy his brain for hours and so he closed his eyes, allowing such ideas to absorb him, making him miss him just that fraction less.

_The stars lean down to kiss you_

_And I lie awake and miss you_

_Pour me a heavy dose of atmosphere_

Blaine sat up again, opening his eyes and reaching up to stroke Pavarotti's silky feathers. He had one tiny part of Kurt in the room with him, and that filled him with the deepest of joys. He took his hand away as he smiled at the small bird and then remembered the warm touch of Kurt's own incandescent skin against his own…

_Cause I'll doze off safe and soundly_

_But I'll miss your arms around me_

_I'd send a postcard to you, dear_

_Cause I wish you were here_

Kurt allowed his fingers to drift down and mark a trail across his pillow and along his duvet, stroking every texture as he closed his eyes and drank in the sweet scent of home, before he then was flooded with another memory: Blaine's deliciously musky scent which he had only been able to truly breathe in when the two had embraced and he had leant so close to Blaine's neck…

_I'll watch the night turn light blue_

_But it's not the same without you_

_Because it takes two to whisper quietly_

_The silence isn't so bad_

_Till I look at my hands and feel sad_

_Cause the spaces between my fingers_

_Are right where yours fit perfectly_

Kurt watched as a tear fell and splashed onto the empty hand in his lap.

Blaine looked down at his own and flexed the muscles within them, sighing as he felt the gaps between each finger, reminiscing about the few times where he had risked holding Kurt's hand within his own. The occasions that had been rare but radiant.

_I'll find repose in new ways_

_Though I haven't slept in two days_

_Cause cold nostalgia chills me to the bone_

_But drenched in vanilla twilight_

_I'll sit on the front porch all night_

_Waist deep in thought because when_

_I think of you I don't feel so alone_

Kurt wiped away the tears from his cheeks, allowing himself instead to break into a small smile. After all, it wasn't as though he would be without him forever.

_I don't feel so alone_

They both turned towards the windows and looked out at the dark night. The stars lit up the black blanket of the night, which seemed to envelop the world. It tried to shut out all light but those luminous spots managed to shine through no matter what it cost them.

_I don't feel so alone_

_As many times as I blink_

_I'll think of you tonight_

_I'll think of you tonight_

_When violet eyes get brighter_

_And heavy wings grow lighter_

_I'll taste the sky and feel alive again_

_And I'll forget the world that I knew_

_But I swear I won't forget you_

_Oh if my voice could reach back through the past_

_I'd whisper in your ear:_

_"Oh darling I wish you were here"_

* * *

><p>Blaine breathed heavily as he stood up and felt an odd, unfamiliar feeling in the pit his stomach. It took a moment before he realised what it was: hunger. He was positively ravenous, but if felt as though such recognition had only just caught up with him now, after quite a few weeks of only eating for necessity because he was made to by his mother.<p>

He went over to his door, pulling it open, ready to call down to his mum, only to find her a few feet away from his room, putting a book away on the shelf in the landing.

She turned her head to look at him, pausing slightly as she took in his features, as though she had seen an alteration to them somewhat. The corners of her mouth pulled up in a smile. "Can I help you, darling?"

"Yes, I – err… You still making dinner?"

"I will be shortly, yes, once your father gets home from his meeting… Why?" She asked, obviously knowing the answer, but wanting to hear it from him all the same.

"I was wondering if it would be all right if I could join you tonight?" Blaine asked a little sheepishly.

His mother broke her usually cool composure by breaking into a wide grin. "I should think you can, yes."

"Cool… thanks," Blaine said, beginning to shut the door to his room once more.

"Oh and Blaine, honey?" She said, just as he was about to close it completely. He stood it ajar once more, so that his face was just visible.

"Yeah?"

"I _do _hope that you will allow me to meet him some day."

Blaine flushed red, but merely gave her a look to suggest that he had no idea what she was on about.

He closed the door and she turned back to the bookshelf, humming a light melody to herself as she did so.

* * *

><p>Did you listen to the song? You had better listen to it! It's beautiful and makes me want to cry when I think of these two singing it together, without knowing the other one is doing the same...<p>

So, I hope you liked this, it is one of my favourite chapters so far, as I think I have said, but I am saying it anyway... because I can. Stay turned because in the next chapter, they've got to get back to Hogwarts, yes, they've got to get back to school. Back to witches, and some wizards and a few magical beasts. There are also Goblins (in Gringotts, which doesn't feature) and some Ghosts who float around occasionally and then they all sit down and eat some magical feasts. They feel that this is all that they want and quite possibly all that they need. But they're wrong, because Klaine need and want each other more ;)

To those who don't understand that and think I am crazy, I apologise, but I am a little anyway, so that assumption is fair regardless. To those of you who know... I don't FIND that surprising at all.


	18. Chapter 18: Returning

Chapter Eighteen: Returning

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><p>Kurt pushed his trunk along the length of King's Cross Station, his heart lifting higher up into his throat with each step.<p>

He had been struggling to contain the exhilarated feeling within himself for several days now. It had not been an easy task by any stretch of the imagination. He had been forced to busy himself with anything that could cause some kind of distraction. Thank God that he and Finn now had separate rooms, although next to each other, or else his brother would have most definitely realised Kurt's angst as he rearranged his Feng-Shui several times.

He had spent a long time pulling off all of his wall hangings and pictures and moving them about, throwing all of them away and going out to find new things, in order to redecorate. Hunting down new garments so that he could then transform them to fit his own outspoken dress-sense, which normal high street retailers could not supply, since he could very rarely afford the designer labels. Searching around for different musical soundtracks that he did not yet have in his vast collection. Trying out new recipes from his already wide array of cookbooks, many of them now centring around the thorough healthy-eating guidelines that Burt had been instructed to abide by, whilst Kurt persevered to try and make them delicious — as they often were. Practicing his vocal range extensively and contributing a new range of show tunes and female pop-icon singles to his armoury of solos.

Yes, he had forced himself to become focused on every preoccupation imaginable that would cause him any form of intrigue.

Yet, despite his greatest efforts, he had still been spending a great deal of his mind's capacity counting down the moments until he was back. Counting down the moments until he was able to leave the, admittedly familiar and comfortable, realms of his hometown, but to go where not only his family accepted him. He loved them dearly, it was the rest of the town's population whom he faced a difficulty with.

But most of all, he had been counting down the moments until-

"Have you got everything?" Burt asked to the left of him, wrenching Kurt out of his train of thought regrettably.

"What? Oh, yes – Yes, I think so." Kurt replied. He was positive in fact. Since he had been thumbing through the contents of his trunk for two weeks now, making sure he had everything down to a tee. Making sure everything was in order for his return.

Another distraction that had proved futile.

"Cool, well we shall leave you here, kiddo, if that's all right? Finn, you okay with everything?" He looked up to the taller boy who stood on the other side of Kurt, Carole striding next to him on the end of their party's line.

"Yeah, sounds good; me and Kurt can take it from here," He grinned down at his brother, who couldn't help but return one with equal, if not surpassing, enthusiasm as he struggled to keep the hand that was gripping Pavarotti's cage from shaking, thus giving away the tremble of emotion inside of him. The tiny bird hooted, earning him steely glances from the muggles passing by.

One woman hissed a disapproving comment in her husband's ear and Carole stuck her tongue out at them once their backs were turned, causing Kurt to giggle, half out of genuine amusement, and half from nerves.

Then he saw the 9 and 10 signs before them, at that moment, and he felt as though taking long breaths was suddenly impossible. Each one was an effort to steady.

Finn and the others seemed oblivious to his inner turmoil, which was probably for the best.

No, correction: it was definitely for the best.

The family stopped between Platform 9 and 10, Kurt gazing up at the barrier: the beautiful portal that led him and Finn back to the wondrous world beyond. He knew at that moment that he had to get back to Hogwarts. He had to get back to school. It was as though his life depended on it.

He could hear his blood pound against his eardrums, so that he hardly heard the encouraging words Carole spoke to him as she hugged him goodbye. He merely agreed with a smile, and she seemed to accept that response, therefore he was off the hook. He decided to pay more attention as she turned to her own son, who has just finished bidding Burt farewell.

Carole pulled Finn into a tight hug. "Good luck, Sweetie, try and keep out of trouble. Study hard." She said the last part with particular emphasis and Finn laughed sheepishly.

Kurt placed Pavarotti upon his trunk carefully, before turning towards his father, tears already brimming his eyes and Burt clamped a hand on his shoulder.

"You take care of yourself Kurt, and try not to worry about things so much, okay? Write to me whenever you feel the need. I'd tell you to enjoy yourself, but I know you'll do that anyway."

Kurt couldn't respond with words, he merely shot into his father's arms and embraced him whole-heartedly.

"I'll miss you." He whispered.

Even though the prospect of Hogwarts was thoroughly compelling, saying goodbye to his father - his rock - was always one of the most difficult things he had to face each year. It was like a child letting go of his safety blanket, but at the same time, Kurt knew it was necessary for him to let go and proceed forward on his own.

"Same to you, kid." Burt whispered, resting his cheek atop Kurt's head. "You'll stay safe, won't you?"

Kurt nodded, yet in his heart he knew that judging by last year's events, such matters may be beyond his control.

"Now go on, you don't want to be hanging around here with your old man while your friends are waiting for you." Burt chuckled, trying to sound off-hand, but Kurt could always tell when he was trying hard not to reveal his emotions too much.

But that was his father, and he loved him for it all the same. "Say hello to them all for me, and who was it, Blake? Blaize? …That other guy you were telling me about."

"Blaine, Dad," Kurt said, rolling his eyes so that he did not have to keep eye contact with his father while he spoke the name.

"That was it, sorry, I can't keep up with it all I guess. Yeah, say hi and hopefully I will see them all at some point."

Kurt almost flushed at the thought of Blaine and his Dad meeting, it had been impossible to refrain from mentioning the older Gryffindor all summer, and he was thankful that Finn knew him from Quidditch, so that it did not stand out as too irregular. He reckoned his father may suspect something, but the less he knew about his possible assumptions, the better.

Anyway, he didn't want to think of that now as he gave his dad another hug,

Kurt sniffed and pulled away from the comfort and safety of his father's arms, holding his hand for one second before allowing himself to withdraw completely and grip both hands onto his luggage once more.

"Ready?" Finn asked, looking to Kurt with a glint in his eye. His brother nodded and Finn ran forward into the barrier, disappearing from sight, the surrounding muggles remaining ignorant of such an event.

Kurt turned around one last time to look at Burt and Carole, who now stood arm in arm.

"You'll take care of yourself?" He said, directing this at his father sternly.

"I'll make sure he does for you, Kurt." Carole assured him and at that moment he did feel genuinely thankful that she would be there with him, even if he would have preferred to be there himself.

Burt gave her a grumpy look before turning back to his son. "She will. Now hurry up, else you'll miss the train!"

Kurt nodded once and sighed his last goodbyes, smiling before turning around and pushing the trunk forward in order to pass through the barrier himself.

* * *

><p>Nothing could ever compare to the scene that lay beyond the barrier.<p>

It filled Kurt with such a sense of excitement that surged through his entire body. The first thing he noticed, before he'd even fully travelled through, was the noise. Hundreds of joyous students babbling together, each trying to outdo the clamour by adding their own voice to the fray and thus amplifying it further. Squawks of owls, croaks of toads, hisses of cats added another element to the chaos, contributing to it further with the rattle of their cages. Then the ironically louder shouts of parents, trying to silence their noisy children to no avail and generally just worsening the situation.

A sea of embraces met Kurt's eyes, of either farewell to parents and family or greetings from school friends. Tears and laughter mixed the air in the strangest yet most pleasant of ways, because they all derived from a sentiment of loving, as they had to let go of someone cared for, or say hello to another. Even the sadness upon the platform was born from pure hearts.

Mischievous first years ran around, ducking beneath outstretched arms and highly stacked trunks. Whistles were blown to signal that students should be boarding the train and the air was humid from the steam, which billowed high above them in great white-grey clouds, warming up the already stuffy gaggle of bodies.

The many colours of non-uniformed witches and wizards blurred before Kurt's eyes, making it almost impossible to distinguish particular patterns or shapes. The people seemed to blend into one another, becoming tangled within each other's image.

The industrial smell swept through the platform, but it was not unpleasant, even if the mingling scent of owl droppings may have been less agreeable, it was something that you became far too accustomed to notice in the wizarding world.

Well, Kurt always did notice and wrinkled his nose, but he was probably just the exception.

It was a familiar scent, and it beckoned them onto the transport that led to where they all yearned to be.

Because even though everyone was a separate individual, there was a certain feel of community, a common ground of unity in their desire for the destination.

* * *

><p>Kurt smiled and breathed it all in, basking in it for just a moment before three faces drew his attention more forcefully than the general atmosphere.<p>

Finn had found Rachel and Mercedes and they both ran towards him, mouths beaming and eyes shining as they threw their arms around him in unison, almost knocking him off his nimble feet.

"Whoa, okay, okay, it's good to see you too!" He laughed; patting them on their backs as he pulled back from what he was sure would break his bones if he stayed within it much longer.

"Let him breathe!" Finn said, wincing slightly. Kurt hazarded a guess that his own greeting hadn't been so forceful, judging by Rachel's sheepish glance towards him, which was followed by a cough in an attempt to cover up the direction of her eyes.

Kurt sighed inwardly; would it ever end?

At least they were being nice to one another now, even if an air of relaxation hadn't quite managed to settle between them yet.

Kurt's spirits were so lifted at that moment, however, that he was having difficulty caring even if that made him a selfish being; he was just so happy to be with them all again and he pulled them all into another hug.

"How was your summer?" Mercedes asked.

"Nothing compared to how my autumn is about to be," Kurt answered, finding it hard to focus on the past when the present was so invigorating.

Mercedes nudged him, "No, come on; I want to know!"

Kurt laughed and decided to bow to her wishes by storming into details about the new teal and turquoise jacket he had fashioned over the past two weeks; the performance of The Lion King at the theatre that his father had managed to get him tickets to; and the summer's collection of Vogue covers which he now had stashed in the side of his Trunk for closer reading once at Hogwarts.

Mercedes listened attentively before telling him of her own preoccupations and then they all entered into a full-blown discussion about the past few months, with continuous references to how they had had thoughts of each other throughout, and what these next few terms could bring.

Then the whistles of the train were beginning to sound quite shrilly and they took this as an indication that perhaps it was time to get on the Hogwarts Express, which stood before them gloriously, a huge streak of scarlet, black and silver, shining brightly as they moved towards it.

The whole time that they had been talking; that he had been surveying the countless students around; that he had been thinking of the times ahead that year; he had also been looking out for something else. For a glimpse of a dark head of hair. For a shimmering pair of golden-brown eyes.

Yet, no such sight had greeted his eyes in his time on the platform, and he was beginning to feel his stomach twist uncomfortably.

It had only been a suspension up until the end of last year, hadn't it? He was sure that had been the case… but the more he looked and the less he saw of the missing void that had escaped him throughout the entire summer and it made his heart fill with dread.

However, there seemed no alternative but to board the train without him.

The others remained oblivious to the thoughts of despair already starting to creep into their best friend's head. They were still chattering away about previous and possible future events at such a fast pace that Kurt may have struggled keeping tabs on the conversation, even if he had been fully attentive and not continuing to fight his way through the swarm of students that were all clambering onto the train in a great wave.

* * *

><p>"What compartment shall we take?" Rachel asked, attempting to take charge of the situation, adopting a bossy and business-like tone.<p>

"I am going to go with which ever one is free…" Finn supplied, grimacing at her, to which she retuned an abashed smile, ducking her head and leading the way down the crowded aisle.

As they walked further and further down the train the students seemed to deplete in number — a welcome change — and they were able to move more freely through the different carriages.

"When does the sweet cart start heading down?" Finn asked, clutching his stomach, which grumbled unpleasantly.

"It kind of depends when she gets to us… which could be a while. I knew we should have gotten on earlier," Mercedes sighed. "Oh well."

"I think we should take that compartment over there," Rachel said, pointing dramatically towards her desired spot.

"No, that one is number 23. That's where Xander Litenprune threw up last year. I am _not _going anywhere near it." Kurt said, folding his arms defiantly.

"They would have cleaned it up, Kurt."

"I don't care how many times they used Scurgify, or any other spell: these trousers aren't going anywhere near anything vomit-stained." Kurt persisted, looking utterly horrified at the thought.

"Well then, I think you may have to remain standing throughout the entire journey," A voice behind them sniggered.

Kurt turned to see Wes leaning against the frame of his own compartment. His arms were folded casually and his face was a picture of amusement as he spied Kurt.

Kurt hardly noticed however, as his heart leapt while he attempted to peer back and through the glass door to the others lining the seats behind Wes. He could only make out a knee of one unidentified boy.

"What do you mean?" Finn asked, regarding Wes' comment, face scrunched up in confusion.

Wes grinned. "Seriously? How many years has Hogwarts been established? And how many queasy students have you seen pass through this train? They may as well run the engine on First Year's puke." He continued merrily.

Kurt wrinkled his nose. "You know, sometimes Wes, you are truly a repulsive human being."

He only grinned wider at this evaluation and put on a mock-flirtatious drawl; "I sure have missed the sweet way you speak to me, Kurt."

Kurt scowled slightly, but not completely seriously as, in an odd and twisted way, he had sort of missed the now-7th Year's company also.

"Great. We're sitting here then," Rachel declared, as if the assessment of vomiting Hogwarts pupils had settled her decision. The other three filed inside, but Kurt tried to steal one last glance to where Wes had come from and the others within his compartment.

"You can quit craning your neck. He isn't in here." Wes said, having to supress his mirth with great difficulty and little success.

Kurt's head snapped back to a regular position, as he tried to cover up the action he had just been caught red-handed in performing.

"I wasn't." He retorted regardless.

Wes snorted, but ignored his denial, his voice turning suddenly serious for a moment, a tone that Kurt had never before witnessed:

"Blaine never sits with us on here."

Kurt felt the knot in his stomach tighten. "Why?"

Wes raised his eyebrows.

"You really have to ask me that?"

Kurt sighed for a moment. Yes, he knew precisely why Blaine would have difficulties with this particular journey. He had been foolish to neglect the idea earlier when contemplating what had become of the boy who was mysteriously absent from the platform. He could also certainly see why Blaine, who was so solitary with these matters, would wish to be elsewhere from his hyperactive friends.

But then Kurt narrowed his eyes; "How did you know-"

"Come on," Wes scoffed. "If Blaine was going to detail that story to anyone, it would have been you. I'm not an idiot, even I can tell when someone has had a weight lifted off of them, and nothing could have been a bigger burden lifted than the one taken off of him after finally confessing to somebody about _that. _SoI figured that was the only possible conclusion."

Kurt had to admit he was a little stunned by this; Wes hadn't ever struck him as one with much perception. It wasn't as though he was unintelligent; he just seemed to let everything bounce off of him with idle (and quite often vulgar or immature) humour; without much thought of consequences or other's reactions. He supposed that was not a reason why he wouldn't have noticed something as significant as an altered attitude in his close friend, but Wes' general carefree demeanour just hadn't prepared him for such an involved insight. Perhaps he had not given the quirky boy enough credit.

Even then, Wes seemed to chuckle at the bewilderment upon Kurt's features. He flashed the blue badge of the robes he had already changed into: "You don't think the sorting hat stuck me in Ravenclaw for larks, do you?"

Kurt smiled briefly at this, and he had not failed to dwindle on Wes' words which had suggested that he was the one Blaine seemed most likely to confide in, even after such a short friendship.

But then suddenly he pursed his lips, remembering that now was not the time to get way laid by ridiculous fantasies and dreams.

"So… where is he?"

Wes nodded towards the door that exited this that particular carriage; "31. It's always 31."

Kurt was going to ask why, but he reckoned he could already hazard a guess at the answer, and he wasn't sure if he wanted a confirmation. He merely nodded and turned back to head in that direction.

"Kurt," Wes called to him as he did so.

Kurt looked back over his shoulder.

"Just a warning… he isn't going to be a barrel of laughs, you know."

"I know," Kurt said in a low whisper.

Wes nodded. "I can't even guarantee he'll want you there, so be prepared for him to ask you to leave and if he does… just don't argue it, all right?"

Kurt gazed at him for one perplexed moment.

"I would never."

Wes smiled genuinely instead of his usual smirk or troublesome grin; "No, I suppose you wouldn't."

Kurt smiled briefly in return before turning back around and heading towards the carriage Wes has indicated, heart thudding louder than he had ever known it to as his insides felt like an expanding lead balloon, pulling him to the earth's core with a deadly force.

Mercedes saw him go and gave one look to the others to indicate that they should let him leave.

* * *

><p>Wes settled back into his own compartment with the other two. He reached for one of the Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans that Trent had brought in.<p>

"Well?" David asked, leaning forward intently.

Wes glanced at him triumphantly, not answering directly, merely tossing the bean high in the air and catching it in his mouth. "Mmmm, victory flavoured."

* * *

><p>Hello Readers!<p>

So, I know this is a relatively short chapter, but the next one is much more action-packed and, yes, you guessed it: Klaine are to be reunited!

I feel that I may as well give away that spoiler, as it is inevitable, and this chapter may not have had the same promise of reunion that you had hoped. It was necessary, however, and you shall see that by the update I have for you tomorrow. Let's just say, meeting Blaine again will not be quite the happy experience Kurt had initially expected. I guarantee some sweetness for you all, however!

Please don't hate me, I know you want them back in the same room at least, just give me one more day and I shall grant your wish!

Thank you all for following so intently thus far, it really, truly, means the world to me!

Season three in 5 weeks! You psyched?

Are ya?

I am!


	19. Chapter 19: The Hogwarts Express

Chapter Nineteen: The Hogwarts Express

(Songs: Motley Crue – Home Sweet Home)

* * *

><p>Kurt tapped the glass on the outside of compartment 31.<p>

He had been standing there for a good several minutes before he had been able to bring himself to do so. It felt like an invasion on Blaine's privacy, and Kurt had been rooted to a stationary position through his confliction over whether or not it would be the right thing to do. In the end, however, he could not resist the possibility of seeing _him_ again, after so many weeks apart. It was too much to hold himself back from.

But no answer came as a reply.

Kurt shuffled anxiously, watching the door nervously.

Had he heard him?

Was he even in there?

Did he want not want him to enter?

Should he knock again…?

The knowledge of right course of action seemed to slip from his fingers like soap and skid across the floor of the train, which had not yet started moving, several students still filing on-board around him, although he hardly noticed their presence.

Kurt sighed and leant the back of his head against the glass, wrestling with himself.

"Moron." He muttered a little louder than he had intended, scolding his own actions and thoughts.

Just then he heard a click.

He looked down and saw that the handle on the door was pointing vertically rather than the horizontal position it had been moments ago.

It had been unlocked.

Had the boy within heard his voice?

He put a hand to his heart as it jumped and he could have sworn that it had just skipped a beat. Almost choking from his amazement at this, he then had to mentally shake himself and not waste any more time in opening the now unlocked compartment. Who knew how long this invitation would be extended… Kurt wasn't about to risk it for anything in the world.

He pushed open the door, and found himself faced with an insufferable juxtaposition.

On one hand, there he was, sitting there before his very eyes.

Every inch of him was as real as the eye could see, the ear could hear, the fingers could dare to touch and the olfactory sense could so welcomely smell.

So long had Kurt been deprived of such a sight that was the boy that sat before him that no matter how hard he tried, he could in no way prevent the fizz of electricity from running through his body like a miniature shock of lightening, shooting through each vein and ricocheting off of every bone.

However, this should-be wondrous feeling was marred by a deeply unpleasant shadow that spread across the tiny room.

Blaine did not appear exactly how Kurt had remembered him from the year before: cool and confident, with a smile on his face and a joke at his heart. The boy before him was presented as something different entirely…

His skin seemed ghostly pale, and not the same as when he had seen him filled with rage or deprived of energy after facing Karofsky. It was more gaunt than that, and it was only the background for the most distressing expression that Kurt had ever seen worn on another human being, let alone one for whom he cared so deeply. It was not an over-exaggerated expression, in fact its subtly seemed to be the reason why it was so tragic to behold. He just seemed to stare forward into nothingness when Kurt first pushed open the door, as though he were very slowly burning a hole in the back of the seat opposite, but reaching far beyond anything and into a black hole that span on for hours, sucking him in through his vision.

His lips were dry and his jaw was not clenched, but tight, like every one of his muscles seemed to be, but not through exerted force, simply because his body could not possibly shift to relax them.

He was sat rather normally other than the tension that ran the length of his body, causing it to be rigid. His hands lay in his lap, locked together tightly and Kurt could see his fingernails bite into his raw skin. He seemed so fragile, like the slightest touch would shatter him.

However, when Kurt did enter and the boy before him recognised this fact, his eyes snapped to him. The eyes that before now had enthralled Kurt beyond measure now reduced him to misery. They did not seem lifeless, not quite, but Kurt almost wished that they did because the picture of anguish and torment that lurked behind them was almost too much to bear, even when he attempted to pull his lips into a smile when he saw the younger Gryffindor. That in itself was almost heart breaking.

"Hi," Blaine breathed, not seeming able to manage much more and Kurt was at a loss of what to do. Blaine seemed to realise his distress at the scene that met his eyes here and he shook his head; "I'm fine."

He tried again to smile in order to comfort his friend, but it failed abysmally.

Kurt went over and sat beside the older boy.

"No, you're not. I mean… have you… are you like this _every _time?"

Blaine pursed his lips and tore those desolate eyes away from the countertenor. That was confirmation enough.

"Oh Blaine…" Kurt croaked, managing to forcefully beckon back the tears for Blaine's sake, positive that him becoming a crying mess was not going to benefit the situation in any way.

Blaine's hands had sunk further into his lap and he twisted them together. "It's not just because of… I told you that trains and that never agreed with me before… before…. you know…."

"Yes, but I had no idea it was like this," Kurt said, appalled.

Blaine bowed his head and uttered in the tiniest whisper: "I'm sorry."

"What on earth are you apologising for, Blaine?" Kurt asked, looking at him in pure amazement, almost laughing but humourlessly. "How could this possibly be something you have to say sorry for in any way?"

Blaine shrugged and coughed a laugh himself. "I don't know, I mean, you don't have to be here, if you don't want… the others always left me be because then it was easier for me to just shut down and ignore this whole journey."

Kurt looked down at Blaine's profile, which was turned away. It was strange, but even in such a vulnerable state; Blaine's guard was still erect. He could never allow himself to be completely unshielded. The closest he had ever seen him was that night out in the grounds of Hogwarts. He was always so determined to act okay and pretend that nothing was wrong. In a way it was admirable, but mostly it was just deeply frustrating.

"I will only leave if you want me to, Blaine."

Kurt wanted more than anything to reach out, to touch and comfort him. To hold him. Oh God, if only he could hold him. But it was impossible to judge what actions and words would make matters worse. He did not want to add any more strife to the already delicate state that Blaine was in.

Then something happened that rectified his inner antagonisms. Or at least amended them, and answered the previous statement he had spoken to the revisited-6th Year student.

The train lurched forward suddenly, propelling the massive construction into movement and in the same second that it did so, Blaine's hand shot out and seized Kurt's own for support.

Kurt took it gladly and squeezed it tight.

Blaine shut his eyes for a moment, his grip almost crushing Kurt's hand entirely, although the younger boy let out no sound of pain or complaint. In all honesty, the thrilling feeling of Blaine's skin and hold on him far outweighed any damage that could possibly come from the gesture.

Blaine let out a low gasp as the train settled into a steady rhythm, all though he seemed to have gotten paler and he bent forward, clutching his free hand to his hair as he breathed deeply, his other hand still firmly placed in Kurt's, having relinquished the pressure slightly.

"Sorry," He said again, forehead resting on his knee as he spoke. "That's always the worst part."

The journey on the train was an odd experience, far from what Kurt had imagined his reunion with Blaine to be like. Then again, most of those had been far beyond the realms of possibility anyway, and so it was not exactly a surprise when they did not come to be…

It was strange, because all though it should have been a wholly depressing experience, having to witness Blaine in such a dire state, it was hard to pull his mind away from the fact that he was just there with him. That he held his hand throughout the entire journey, and that he spent a great deal of time nestled into Kurt, his head on his lap as he curled up into a doze. Kurt couldn't remember when exactly the older boy had drifted off into the realms of dreams, but when he did so Kurt couldn't help but stare down at him; he looked so peaceful and undisturbed, a welcome change from the on-edge and vexed way he had been while conscious.

They had not been able to talk for long; Blaine wasn't really in the sort of position to start up a lengthy conversation, but when he finally rested upon Kurt the younger boy felt his heart glow warmly as he watched his sleeping form. He wanted so badly to reach out and stroke his curls or wrap his arms around Blaine, but he felt as though such an action would be some kind of violation, especially as he looked so angelic and defenceless as he lay there.

Eventually, Kurt found himself slipping off into his own slumber, drowsy from the events and emotions of the day — as well as the journey itself - all though he was sure that if he had not been overcome by tiredness, he could have quite happily wiled away the hours just gazing at Blaine, bewitched my the rhythm of his breaths as he slept.

* * *

><p>Blaine awoke first.<p>

He scrunched up his eyes and brought his hands up to rub them into a semi-alert state. He flexed the muscles behind his shoulder-blades slightly, allowing his arms to raise in the stretch. As he brought his hands down, however, he realised that they fell on something warm and soft that moved ever so gently.

Blaine's eyes were fully awake now, as he registered what the mass beneath him was.

Kurt's chest.

It was steadily moving because of his breathing deeply, indicating that he was still fast asleep.

Blaine could feel his body flush with anxiety and fear, but mostly elation, as he did not move away instantly from the snoozing boy beneath him. He allowed his ear to rest against the spot where Kurt's heartbeat drummed steadily, even though he knew his own was moving at a much faster pace.

Yet he knew he could not stay like this, and so he reluctantly withdrew himself from the warm and inviting form.

He placed his hands gingerly, so as not to disturb Kurt, and then looked up at his sleeping features. The sunlight streamed in through the train's compartment window, which, Blaine had only just realised had come to a halt.

A picture of the outskirts of Hogwarts met his eyes as he gazed out at the sunny landscape. His ears pricked as he now noticed the rustle of movement around them and the streaks of black-clad students, dressed in their robes, sweeping out of the carriages.

Blaine looked back at the sleeping boy who seemed so harmonious where he lay, and sighed fancifully and with a certain degree of awe. Then he made himself shut his eyes once more, reflecting briefly on the amount of solace he felt at that moment, and given the setting of such a tranquil emotion — which usually only ever caused him feelings of pain and sadness - he knew this to be remarkable, and he also knew exactly who he owed it to.

He opened his eyes once more and took hold of Kurt's shoulder, shaking it gently so as to break the boy out of his dreams.

"Kurt," He whispered, watching as the blue eyes he had missed so forcefully fluttered open and then settled upon him, piercing his own gaze like cutting crystal. "We're here."

Kurt sat up quite suddenly, seeming a little disorientated as he brought a hand to his temples, massaging them slightly and whipping his head around. "Did We… Did I fall asleep?"

Blaine fought hard to supress a grin and instead only emitted a slight smile of amusement. "I believe so. We have to get ready; we're meant to be in our robes."

"Shoot!" Kurt said, pulling out his wand. "Accio robes."

The compartment door slid open of its own accord, allowing for the black garments to swoop inside, before closing once more.

Blaine chuckled.

"You could have just gone to get them."

Kurt smirked. "I am merely utilising the ability to use magic, being without it all summer is like torture. All though, I guess _you_ no longer have that problem."

Blaine breathed a laugh and found his own uniform.

In truth, Kurt had just not wanted to leave the vocalist's side, even for a second. He flicked his wand, causing the curtains over the compartment windows to draw and made sure that the door was locked before the two of them changed, turning away from each other and trying to ignore the awkward tension wrought between them at that moment. They also tried to ignore any inappropriate thoughts that may invade if they let their minds wander and focus on what the other was doing at that moment.

This torment soon subsided, as they were both dressed ready to go.

"Shall we?" Kurt asked, turning back towards Blaine, who was fixing his red and gold tie in place tenderly, stroking the material fondly before looking up to meet Kurt's eyes.

He hesitated for a moment.

"Before we go…" He breathed, urging his heart to settle as he looked up into that face which, until now, he had only been able to hopelessly picture for weeks on end. "I just… I wanted to thank you, for staying with me. I never really thought I could bear to have company on here but… and I've definitely never managed to fall _asleep_ either… I don't know how-" He shook his head and laughed a little at his incoherency before returning his gaze purposely to fix Kurt with an impenetrable stare. "Thank you… For being here."

Kurt's own breath caught in his throat, meaning that it took him a moment to win back the ability to produce words. Eventually he managed to return a response; "I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."

* * *

><p>The two boys immersed themselves in the crowd outside the Hogwarts Express, joining the large crowd of people who were making their way towards the carriages.<p>

Kurt craned his neck, but he failed to see his other three friends. He figured they must have gone ahead, and he was sure to see them in the Great Hall once they arrived anyway. In all honesty, he was not sure he could stand the smug glances from Mercedes when he reappeared, especially if he did so with Blaine at his side.

Which the older boy was at this moment, much to Kurt's delight.

"Does it feel weird?" Kurt asked him as the pace of the crowd became too slow to make any real progress.

"What?" Blaine asked, looking at the Gryffindor next to him. His colour had swam back into his complexion rather beautifully since they had left the train, and each second that passed made him look more and more like the stunning boy that Kurt remembered from their last year here. He was relieved to see this and couldn't help but beam at him, before turning his attention back to his question:

"Having to restart the year, isn't it going to be a pain?"

Blaine considered this for a moment.

"In a way… but then again, hopefully the first few classes won't be too difficult," He laughed and then shook his head slightly. "No, I'll miss the guys and it probably will be kind of frustrating at first…"

They had reached the carriages and the two boys clambered into the first one available, sitting themselves down opposite one another, both secretly glad that they had managed to secure one alone together.

"…But, there are certain small advantages to being in your year," Blaine did not look at Kurt directly as he said this, merely allowed his eyes to flicker towards the boy before him, trying to gage his reaction, which the countertenor struggled with enormous difficulty to subdue as his mind raced over the possible implications of _that._

At that moment however, the connection between the two boy's scrutinising was cut short — rather abruptly — by three new bodies hurling themselves into their carriage, which had only just begun to move.

"Holy-" Kurt began as an arm clamped around his shoulders in what he could only guess was meant to be a friendly gesture, the three older boys squeezing their way into the restricted amount of room within the carriage.

"I am so sorry!" David exclaimed, not sorry at all, sitting beside a rather disgruntled looking Blaine. He stared at him and said in mock-surprise; "Oh! Are we interrupting something?"

Wes, who was the boy with his arm around Kurt, winked wickedly at Blaine. "I do hope not, we merely thought that you two would desire the pleasure of our company."

"Which we are sure that you do," Said Trent, on Blaine's other side. "Red Vine?"

He held out the packet to Blaine who gave him a pernicious look, "What the hell are those?"

"They're a muggle sweet," Kurt informed him.

Blaine eyes the red and blue packet as Trent nodded; his father was a muggle and so had provided him with them before he left for Hogwarts.

"Yeah, all right. Gimme one," Blaine said, curiosity getting the better of him.

"_So_, what were _you _two talking about?" David asked, glancing between them mischievously as he spoke in a sing-song voice. "Something fun, I hope."

Kurt glanced nervously at Blaine, who seemed a lot more at ease by the boy's intervention, clearly over the years he had grown used to their shenanigans.

"We were merely discussing me being a 6th Year again."

Wes cackled. "You know I almost forgot about that?"

Blaine rolled his eyes. "Sure you did, because you didn't mention it _at all_ when we performed at the Lima Bean last week." He sighed and turned his gaze more willingly back to Kurt, "My parents eased up on me in the last month and allowed me to go and sing with these idiots."

Trent clasped his hand to his chest and gasped while his mouth was still full of food. "Well, that's the last time I offer you a Red Vine!"

Blaine chuckled and ate the sweet ravenously, clearly enjoying it, and Kurt brightened at seeing more of a spark back in his eyes. It was obvious that these boys could be a pain in the backside at times, but there was always something about Blaine when he was surrounded by them, he seemed far more relaxed and playful whenever they were about, engaging in their quips and teases. He never truly let it get to him, because he knew they didn't really mean it, and he settled into their unique humour with extreme comfort.

"And hey, it isn't my fault that you decided to act like an utter prat and went and got yourself suspended," Wes added.

"Do you guys all live near each other then?" Kurt asked, just as Trent released a chocolate frog, which hopped onto Blaine's curls.

David pulled out his want and yelled: "Engorgio!" So that the enchanted amphibian swelled to the size of a cat, causing Blaine's head to be pushed down by the weight, before it sprang out of the open window of the carriage.

Blaine looked up, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Unfortunately, yes."

"Where do_ you_ live?" Trent asked, a suggestive edge to his tone as he smirked at Kurt and winked.

"Far enough away from you all," Blaine answered before Kurt could, glancing at him as though to indicate that telling them his home's location would most likely be a serious mistake. Kurt took note of this and buttoned his lips.

Wes pouted.

"You two are absolutely no fun at all, and that means that you live so far apart from each other as well! How upsetting… So you didn't see him _at all_ this summer?"

He looked at the boy beside him, Kurt still a little baffled as to why the Ravenclaw's arm remained wound around his shoulders.

"No, I did not."

He glanced up and caught the look in Blaine's eyes in that split-second, and they seemed to blaze with some unidentified intensity, before darting off and staring out of the window at the approaching castle.

Wes did not miss that either. "How very intriguing... So did you speak to one another at all?"

Blaine kept his eyes trained on the sights outside of the window and so Kurt answered him with his own question; "Why are you so inherently interested in me and Blaine?"

Wes put a hand on his heart and gaped, "You know, Kurt, it hurts me that you ask that in such a suspicious manner; I merely wish to know how the summers of my two _very_ good friends have gone!"

"What's my last name?" Kurt asked him.

"Errrr…"

Kurt rolled his eyes, but still chuckled as Wes strained to recall it.

"How did your results go?" David asked instead, a reasonable question for once. Blaine smiled to the side of his friend, allowing himself to engage in the conversation once more, it having been one of the first things he had asked when he had seen Kurt.

"Three Outstandings, three Exceeds Expectations, two Acceptables, one Dreadful." Kurt answered systematically.

That was one of the things he hated about exam results; you always felt like a broken record having to reiterate your answer countless times to various people.

"Wow, nice one!" Trent said, looking impressed at those scores - he himself had never been one to take too kindly to examinations.

"…What did you get a Dreadful in?" Wes couldn't help but ask, and Kurt suspected that he would have. Blaine scowled at his friend however, who still had his arm draped around Kurt's shoulders.

"Herbology," Kurt chuckled. Still couldn't stand those plants.

They accepted this.

"And what did you get Blaine? Oh right, yeah, you already did yours ages ago! See, I forget that you're actually a year older! Must be the height thing. How tall are you again?" Wes teased. Blaine gave him a steely look and did not reply. "By the way Kurt, you sure are cuddly, don't you agree, Blaine? He would be great to, hmmm, let me see…"

"Snuggle up to nap with?" David supplied, his voice quivering just as his counterpart troublemaker's had done as he struggled not to laugh.

Kurt felt his face burn red and he did not look at Blaine at that moment, all though if he had he would have noticed the pink tinge highlighting the vocalist's own cheeks.

"Yes, David! That's exactly what I was thinking."

"Oh look, we're here," Trent said, giving up the pretence and giggling hysterically. He clapped Blaine on the back, "See you round."

The other three scarpered, realising the murderous glances shot at them all from Blaine's eyes as they jumped out of the carriage as soon as it pulled to a halt.

David called back to them after they had put some distance between themselves and the two 6th Years: "Try not to let anything _else _cause you to be late to the Great Hall! Wouldn't want you to start off your year as badly as you ended the last one! Behave yourselves, children!"

"Hummer!" Wes yelled suddenly. "Your last name is Hummer!"

"It's Hummel!" Kurt called back, rolling his eyes.

"Damn…Close enough!"

* * *

><p>Blaine looked up at Kurt once they were out of sight and grimaced. "Sorry about that."<p>

"That's all right, they're kind of endearing… in an odd sort of way." Kurt answered him, causing the boy opposite him to raise a sceptical eyebrow.

"If you say so," He chucked. "Shall we?"

Blaine gestured for Kurt to step out of the carriage, and he did so, once his foot found the ground he gazed up at the scene before him.

Hogwarts castle — the image of which was impossible to get over; to stop making it take your breath away; to prevent it from filling your heart with joy and your mind with optimism as you gazed at its stone walls, high turrets, crystal-looking windows and luscious sweeping green grounds. The sky above it soared a bedazzling banner of powder blue behind the dusty brown bricks of the castle, the deeper blue lake curling around the base and shimmering in the gentle sunlight, which seemed to make the entire structure glow incandescently.

The flock of Hogwarts students leading up to the great doors at the entrance seemed to buzz with the sheer excitement of it all, the suspense rising in each student's heart as they simultaneously drank in the wonder that was the school. Never anywhere else would you see so many teenagers craving to sit in a classroom and absorb as much knowledge as their teachers would allow them to take in. Never again would they find a place that could ever measure up to the high expectations this castle brought, making each student know that no other place would ever hold the golden place inside them that it was situated in.

You could not forget a place like Hogwarts, it would remain with you forever, and all you could do was pity those who would never be able to experience it.

Kurt felt the brush of Blaine's arm against his own as he stood beside the countertenor — him being about the only thing that could have torn his mind away at that moment. He looked across at him and Blaine smiled back.

"You know, in a way you're sort of lucky… being able to have an extra year here," Kurt said in a whisper that seemed to skim across the air like a feather as he turned his attention back to the spectacle before them.

"Yes," Blaine agreed. "For that I am truly grateful… to have another year."

But he wasn't staring up at the school for that moment; instead his eyes lingered upon the entranced face of the boy who stood at his side.

* * *

><p>It was almost painful having to sit across from Rachel as her eyes grew to the size of a bush baby's while she stared up at Jesse on the platform in the Great Hall. Even worse was when Kurt glanced over at Finn's own eyes, looking determinedly at the table, the skin around them strained as he tried not to convey any emotion within them.<p>

His brother saw it anyway.

Jesse grinned however, placing one hand on a microphone stand that he had so requested, wanting to use it as a prop — or so Rachel had told them — for dramatic purposes, rather than bewitching his throat with the amplification charm. She seemed to think this was a much-inspired idea, as though thousands of muggles had never thought to do it before him…

_You know I'm a dreamer_

_But my heart's of gold_

_I had to run away high_

_So I wouldn't come home low _

He voice growled in the glam rock/ heavy metal style, which suited him perfectly. Kurt also noted how that sort of genre was to the particular taste of another Quidditch player sat nearby him…

_Just when things went right_

_Doesn't mean they were always wrong_

_Just take this song and you'll never feel_

_Left all alone_

_Take me to your heart_

_Feel me in your bones_

_Just one more night_

_And I'm comin' off this_

_Long & winding road_

Jesse was undoubtedly a born performer. He had everyone within the hall in a trance-like state, including some of the teachers. Transfixed as the boy sang full-belt. No one could seem more consumed by it all than Rachel however; Mercedes turned her head away for fear that she may vomit in disgust at her smitten friend.

_I'm on my way_

_I'm on my way_

_Home sweet home_

_Tonight, tonight_

_I'm on my way_

_I'm on my way_

_Home sweet home_

_You know that I've seen_

_Too many romantic dreams_

_Up in lights, fallin' off the silver screen_

_My heart's like an open book_

_For the whole world to read_

_Sometimes nothing keeps me together at the seams_

He certainly had the confidence (or cockiness) of a rock star as he took the microphone from the stand and walked down the aisles of the Great Hall stopping, much to Finn's dismay, next to where he and Rachel sat. Jesse took one of Rachel's hands and sang to her. She looked like she was about to explode with infatuation and exhilaration as she thrived in the exclusive privilege of being the centre of much desired attention.

_I'm on my way_

_I'm on my way_

_Home sweet home_

_Tonight, tonight_

_I'm on my way_

_Just set me free_

_Home Sweet Home _

_Home Sweet Home _

_Home Sweet Home_

_Home Sweet Home_

He kissed Rachel's hand before turning and running back up to the stage, in order to conclude the song with full gusto.

_I'm on my way _

_I'm on my way _

_Home Sweet Home _

_Yeah_

_I'm on my way _

_Just set me free _

_Home Sweet Home_

The song faded out to be met by tumultuous applause from around the room, and on the Gryffindor table there was an overly enthusiastic contribution from one small brunette, whereas those who surrounded her gave a less than thrilled reception to the Slytherin Seeker, who proceeded to walk back to his own table at the other end of the hall, but still catching Rachel's eye as he went.

Blaine and Kurt, sat next to one another, looked up at the Ravenclaw table where Wes and David sat, both stuffing the sleeves of their robes into their mouths so as to prevent themselves from further guffaws of laughter. Trent, on the Hufflepuff table, flicked his wand towards the pair of them and the two Gryffindor's saw him mouth the words: "Muffliato," so that the two Ravenclaws could continue their hysterics without notice or ruining their uniforms.

Their attention was soon pulled away, however, as Dumbledore stood up, still clapping lightly as the rest of the applause died down.

"Thank you, Mr St. James. I am so glad to see that these musical performances have been received so well within Hogwarts, and I think that I shall make them a more common occurrence in future. In any case, I am sure that I can hear the sound of stomach's rumbling in unison, so I shall not prolong the feast any longer."

He clapped his hands together twice and a torrent of different foods sprang up onto the plates before them. Jugs filled with fresh pumpkin juice; bowls filled with shiny and juicy apples and pears; a stack of bacon piled one by one on top of each other; a circle of cheeses rimmed the side of one plate; soup bubbled up into one dish; potatoes sprouted up onto a wooden bowl, steaming slowly; small pies grew from underneath to place themselves on metal grids. The smell of it all wafted welcomely to their nostrils as few wasted any time in getting the food from the tables to their mouths in quick succession.

Everyone on the Gryffindor table tucked in immediately.

Well, almost everyone.

Blaine looked up from the food he had already piled onto his own plate to see that Kurt's hands had not yet moved. Both were still clasped tightly on the edge of the table as his shoulders tensed. He was staring at something across the room and it didn't take Blaine long to follow his gaze and find out what had him transfixed as though he had been petrified.

Karofsky sat at the Slytherin table, seemingly unaware that he now had the focus of the two Gryffindor boys. He put food onto his plate like everybody else, got nudged by those next to him who exchanged words and then howled in laughter at something that must have been very amusing. To them anyway - Blaine could imagine the sort of humour acceptable within _that_ House.

Yet, even as Karofsky laughed along, Blaine could see what Kurt had expressed before in his eyes, a sort of dead-pan reaction to their words as if he didn't really respond to them that strongly, or just hadn't taken them in in the first place. Either way, there was something forced about his countenance. Neither boy showed any signs of concern for this however, in fact Kurt looked positively fearful, this being the first time he had laid eyes on his old bully in months.

He jumped as Blaine's hand closed over his own, only for a moment, while everyone else was too preoccupied with their food to notice the two boy's interchange.

He withdrew the hand just as Kurt looked across at him, a painstaking expression displayed on his face that made the older boy's heart go out to him. He tried to convey willed words of comfort to him through his eyes and Kurt smiled at him and whispered; "Thank you," under his breath. Blaine turned away, grateful that his message had been received.

After a while, the two of them noticed that people were whispering all along each of the four tables. A boy next to Mercedes was presently saying something into her ear, and Finn had suddenly gone very white.

Blaine and Kurt exchanged curious glances as they watched Mercedes' mouth fall open.

"What?" Kurt demanded of her at once; after she clasped a hand over her gawp.

She brought the hand down slowly.

"Quinn's pregnant."

Kurt's eyebrows shot up into his scalp as he mimicked a similar expression of shock. He looked out to the Ravenclaw table where Quinn sat only several seats down from Wes and David.

Her head was bent low, covering her face, and as Kurt watched one of the girls beside her turned to say something to her. Whatever it was that she said Quinn clearly didn't take to very well as all of a sudden she was on her feet.

Finn had turned to look at her by now and their eyes met. Tears filled hers as she ducked her head and walked at a fast pace to the back of the hall, towards the great doors. All eyes in the room followed her in silence so that only her footsteps could be heard.

The bump on her stomach was unmistakeable.

The other four Gryffindors looked down at one another, while Finn carried on staring at the doors where the blonde Ravenclaw had just exited.

"How far along is she?… She's pretty big…" Mercedes said; voice edged with pity, as she still seemed utterly astonished by this new development.

Kurt shrugged, "I have no idea. I would guess pretty far."

Finn returned his gaze to his plate of food miserably. Rachel stared between them all, stunned and at a los of what to say.

"…I can't imagine how she's feeling right now." Blaine said in a low voice.

Rachel bit her lip, still glancing around, something holding on the tip of her tongue that she was fighting to relinquish. Her resolve broke as she asked the question that was on the lips of every other student present and probably all around Hogwarts:

"Who's the father?"

Nobody answered. Nobody appeared to know.

* * *

><p>Later that evening the five Gryffindor 6th Years made their way into the common room for the first time that year. As soon as they got in Finn went straight up to their dormitory, saying that he felt shattered and wanted an early night before lessons the next day. Kurt just accepted this and allowed him to escape.<p>

"I think I might head up too," Mercedes said, stretching her arms up and yawning. "You coming, Rachel?"

The small brunette nodded sleepily.

Mercedes looked up at Kurt for a fraction of a second, but it was enough for him to gather her implication and cause him to scowl inwardly.

She giggled. "Night guys," as she took the half-conscious Rachel and led her up the stone steps very carefully so that she would not trip over.

Soon enough however, the two boys were alone.

They turned towards each other, and for one wild moment Kurt was overtaken with the sudden urge to throw his hands around Blaine's neck and kiss him full on the mouth right there and then.

But he didn't.

Instead he became alarmed at his own thoughts and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck, avoiding eye contact with Blaine so that he would not notice his inner-conflictions and to prevent any overwhelming embarrassment.

"Shall we sit down?" He said, already heading over to one of the sofas so as to keep his reddening face turned away from the older boy.

He sat down on one end of the sofa, waiting for the scarlet shade of his face to fade as Blaine hopped onto the other end, turning directly towards Kurt by putting his feet up on the cushions and crossing his legs. Kurt collected himself in time to turn and face Blaine in the same sitting position, so that they were opposite one another. He clasped his hands around his ankles and waited for the older boy to talk first.

Blaine laughed and looked down for a second before bringing his head up, "It seems silly to ask it now, after having spent practically all day together, but how are you?"

Kurt found himself break into an easy smile as he watched Blaine's features light up with the orange glow of the fire, resisting the inappropriate impulses that had tackled him only a moment ago.

"I'm good, really good."

"Not worried about Karofsky?" Blaine asked warily.

Kurt pursed his lips and considered this for a moment. "I guess… I don't know, I can't see him trying anything else. I just… I still hate him so much for what happened with you and him. I think that has taken over anything else to do with him, to be honest."

"Yeah, he isn't exactly my favourite person either." Blaine said with a sarcastic smile. "I can't believe he took me away from this place." He looked around fondly at the walls encasing them. "It seems like an age since I sat here... It feels so good to be back."

His eyes returned to meet Kurt's once more.

"What did you do all the time that you were away?" Kurt asked, leaning forward with the upmost intrigue. "You said your parents eased up on you eventually, didn't you?"

Blaine nodded, "My mum managed to twist my dad's arm after a while. They let me go and see the other three to sing in a few places. Only ones where we got paid, mind, otherwise my father wouldn't stand for it."

Kurt's brow furrowed as he noted the bitterness in Blaine's voice.

"How come?"

Blaine shuffled uncomfortably and sighed, his hands clasping the ends of his elbows; "He doesn't consider singing to be… masculine enough, let's say. He would much rather I spent any small amount of time they permitted outside playing Quidditch instead."

The more Kurt heard about Blaine's father, the more he grew to dislike, even though he had never met the man.

"Blaine… You don't only play Quidditch because…"

"No, no," Blaine assured him. "Okay, yes I tried out for the team because I thought it would give us something in common, but I have long given up on trying to do anything to please him. I never succeed. Anyway, I do genuinely enjoy the game, so I guess in a way my desire to make him proud had something good come out of it after all."

Kurt put out a hand to rest lightly on Blaine's knee. "You shouldn't ever feel the need to do anything to satisfy anyone. You do everything just right on your own."

Blaine smiled and their eyes lingered on each other's for a moment, as if frozen in time, suspended in a calm serenity.

* * *

><p>They talked for a good while into the night, until both of them began to feel groggy. Everything was silent around them, and they decided that perhaps it was best if they made their way to their dormitories.<p>

It was only when the firelight flickered dully before extinguishing entirely that they walked across the common room, and then climbed the stone stairway, approaching the landing, which contained the 6th Year rooms.

That was when they realised something else.

On the door at the end of the landing names were written on a piece of parchment. The two boys read the sheet and then looked up at each other.

Blaine laughed in a whisper, tugging the piece of paper off and folding it in half. "So, shall we go in then… Roomie?"

Kurt filled with elation at the sound of that term and turned his face away so that Blaine could not see the wide grin on his face as he pushed open the door.

They had to tip toe in quietly so as not to wake Finn – the third name written on the door.

Their trunks had already been delivered there, of course, and Kurt went over to feed Pavarotti a treat and then unlatched the door of the cage, allowing him to fly out and into the night's sky. He watched him go and rested his head against the window frame for a moment, allowing the cool breeze to wash over his face.

"Kurt…"

Kurt turned around to see Blaine standing a few feet away from him, next to his own four-poster bed. He leant against one of those posts, his arms folded across his chest as a small smile played across his face.

"Yes?" Kurt asked, not moving, but merely watching the older boy from his side of the room.

Blaine seemed to hesitate for a moment before saying; "You know… I kind of missed you over the summer."

Kurt felt a strange sensation ripple up through his body as he had to supress what could have either been a laugh of joy or tears of it expelling from his body, and knowing him it would have probably been the latter.

"Yeah… I kind of missed you too."

And at that moment he wanted more than ever to close the distance between them that felt like a thousand miles, but instead they both just ducked their heads and went to go and get ready for bed. 


	20. SideNote

Dear Readers,

I shall no longer be writing this story. I'm done. NO MORE.

Psych!

Ha-ha, no, no I wouldn't do that to you — or myself, for that matter, because it has been so fun to write and so lovely to hear all of your wonderful feedback!

No, I am just being cruel; I have much, much more to give you in terms of this story.

But, I am writing this little Side-Note because a couple of people have asked me if I am on Tumblr.

Technically, yes I am, but I don't post all that often. I may start doing so if people demand me to, but I have only been on it for a month now, I think? I don't have many followers; I just needed a site that fed my Harry Potter/Klaine/Glee/Starkid addiction.  
>Anyway, you may check it out if you so please, it would be great to hear from you all on there, and I do have an ask box so go nuts, if you so desire:<p>

tokenweirdo (dot) tumblr (dot) com

Grr, they won't let me paste URLs!

Sorry to anyone who thought I was updating a new chapter – I can't do so every day, and now you're starting to catch up on what I am currently writing, so I need to get a move on! Besides, that last chapter was the longest I have posted to date, so hopefully some of you are satisfied with that for now. If not, well… Err… There's not a whole lot you can do about it, other than bug me, but I make no guarantees that I shall acquiesce to that!

"I am disinclined to acquiesce to your request…means: No!"… I need to watch POTC again…

Apologies, I shall quit bothering you all now and let you get on with your lives.

Thank you again, seriously, I am so so so so so so so so happy that you guys are enjoying the story! It is helping to keep me sane over the Glee hiatus – which shall be ending soon… Eeeeek! — and I am just amazed that people like it at all.

Love to you my fellow Gleeks/Klainers/Potterheads/Starkids!

X


	21. Chapter 20: Guarded

Chapter Twenty: Guarded

(Songs: Sandi Thom – What If I'm Right)

* * *

><p>Having lessons with Blaine was an incredibly odd experience.<p>

Kurt couldn't exactly figure out whether they were a good or bad one.

On the one hand, just to be near enough to him, for their shoulders to be millimetres apart, if not touching, sent sparks shooting through him. Being able to constantly steal glances at him through the corners of his eyes was enough to fill his heart with content as he saw Blaine's own head bent low in concentration - Well, that or staring out of the window, bored out of his mind.

But when he was focused, Blaine's expression was adorable, along with the way that he chewed on the tip of his quill and tapped his finger rhythmically on his knee and stared up at the ceiling while he tried to formulate an answer or remember a fact.

On the other hand, all of these things were _extremely_ distracting.

Especially as he was not full of these pensive expressions all of the time, and the view from the window only appeared to occupy his attention for a short space of time… He got restless.

This particular aspect of Blaine's character, which Kurt had newly discovered, came with problems.

Such as in History of Magic that week, Blaine seemed to tire of writing notes after the first five or ten minutes of the subject and instead –since on this specific occasion Mercedes had made a bee-line for the seat directly beside Kurt – the older Gryffindor had decided to dedicate his time to bewitching a tiny piece of folded paper to fly over and land upon Kurt's desk once Binn's back was turned.

Kurt caught the note, ignoring the light kick from Mercedes as she snickered, and opened it:

_B: Please tell me that you are as bored out of your brilliant mind as I am…_

Kurt's eyes darted up to the ghost-teacher before scribbling down a neat reply and zooming it back over to the (impatiently) waiting Chaser:

_K: To be fair, you are listening to the same lecture for the second time; it is bound to be tiresome._

_B: Okay, please don't tell me that you are finding it interesting, even as new information?_

_K: No, but unlike you, I don't already have notes on this… so quit pestering me and let me get back to my work!_

_B: Come on, I'll lend you my notes. They're super fun._

… _Study with me this evening?_

_K: What on earth are we going to be studying if you persist in making me lose concentration through every class?_

_B: Sorry, you're right._

_So…. Wizard's Chess?_

K: … _I don't think you are quite grasping the point here… Anyway, I can't even play regular chess._

_B: I would be happy to teach you _

_K: I shall talk to you AFTER class. Now, get to work!_

_B: Yes Sir!_

And once he received the last one he stole a quick glance at Blaine, who offered him a mock military salute as he did so.

He supposed that the years of classroom antics with Wes, David and Trent would have made his own leniency towards mischief-making inevitable, even if he had seemed one of the more sensible members of the group. Perhaps Kurt had been mistaken in that evaluation…

Kurt didn't particularly mind, partly because History of Magic was indeed dull as a Doxy and the majority of the information could be easily accessed from their textbooks anyhow, but mostly because he could feel himself melt a little every time that playful grin or troublesome wink flitted across Blaine's features, directed towards the countertenor.

Besides, it was not as though these lapses in concentration ever maintained much of a hindrance to his learning overall, since he had always been a very diligent worker. He had also started to build upon the ability of drawing a line with Blaine, when the vocalist caused to be too much of a distraction, which often ended with sincere apologies on his part when Kurt got touchy.

As well of this, having been forced to swallow the study materials two years in a row now, Blaine was actually a very apt study partner (when he wasn't challenging him to games of Exploding Snap) as well as having a fair amount of intelligence to boot.

Kurt loved it when Blaine found himself going off on a tangent about all things that made him grow passionate. He would often find it very difficult to sit still when such times consumed his being, and he insisted upon pacing the length of the Library, Owlery or Common Room - wherever they happened to be situated.

He would make avid hand gestures when he got fired up, and his face would become so animated that it became quite compelling viewing, with Kurt's mixture of awed and amused responses.

Blaine's voice would heighten in pitch – though not quite to the same extent of Kurt's own octave-range — and he made a habit of running his hand through his dark curls, replacing any feeling Kurt would have at that moment with an almost painful impulse to perform the same action himself. Then he would be forced to wrench his mind out of the gutter.

He waited for a time when he would tire of the would-be 7th Year's company, but it seemed as though that day would never dawn. Every new side to his character; every new trait or mannerism he noticed; every new topic of discussion opened up another door for Kurt to follow through in pure amazement to add to his admiration and feeling of luck that he associated with knowing Blaine at all.

Though, of course, he was lucky to know Kurt too.

And even though the pair spent vast amounts of time together, there were still times they spent apart, which he endured with a sad heart. Such as Quidditch practice or when Blaine attended Herbology or Muggle Studies (one of the subjects that spurred Blaine onto his heated rants about equality, and yet Kurt had never thought relevant for himself to take, seeing as he had grown up in the muggle world until Hogwarts and still had to go back to it in the holidays), and then Kurt would have Care of Magical Creatures and Divination - the latter that he continued without any real reasoning for doing so other than the fact that he was fairly good at it.

Also, there were the times when Kurt went to go and sneak into the girl's dormitory to hang out with Rachel and Mercedes, those moments were sacred. He also gave Blaine space to spend time alone with his 7th Year friends, even though Kurt was beginning to get along fairly well with Wes, Trent and David, who spent a lot of time with his own friends all together, but he still respected the fact that Blaine should get some time to himself with them, even if it meant less time that he could spend with the precious boy who he would be perfectly happy living through every waking second with.

* * *

><p>However, a trouble arose one day at a time when he was separated from Blaine, and an opportunity was singled out and seized by one particular Slytherin boy two weeks into the school year.<p>

"Kurt!"

The sound of his name called out by this voice still sent a shiver down the Gryffindor's spine. His mind raced over the possible reasons why his name would be called by it at all, and why it was fast approaching down the stone steps of the Divination Tower.

So, his instinct was to walk faster in the opposite direction.

"Kurt, please," The voice was close behind him now, despite his efforts, keeping the volume down to a hiss so as not to attract attention to the fact that he was trying to engage him in conversation.

Obviously, this hadn't been the first time the pair had run into each other, seeing as they both shared classes now just as he and Blaine did. However, they had never interacted past a brief flash of wary eye-contact, which Kurt had still found unfavourable, let alone having Karofsky now deliberately track him down.

Kurt hastily reached the bottom of the stairs, hugging his books tightly to his chest, his eyes snapping around disapprovingly as a few students filed past to stand as witnesses. This was a comforting observation.

"Kurt-" On the third time his name was spoken a hand reached out to grab his shoulder, and as though it were a knee-jerk reaction, Kurt span around, drawing his wand at the ready and holding it by his side tightly.

"Don't touch me," He said curtly, eyes blazing and leaving a stunned Karofsky in their path.

He bowed his head slightly, averting his own eyes away from the furious boy before him; "I suppose I deserve that."

"Yes, you do," Kurt said venomously, sparing no sympathy.

Karofsky's expression was littered with disdain.

"Please, Kurt, I won't hurt you… I just want to talk."

"I think that you and I are way past ever having pleasant conversations, thank you very much." Kurt said, trying to move away, but Karofsky blocked him off.

"Can't we just be civil to one another for a moment?"

Kurt almost choked on his indignation.

"_Really?_ Did you honestly just ask me that?" He spat. "Do you even know the meaning of civility, Karofsky? You seemed to have a warped concept of it last year. Why is it that you've cornered me now - because Blaine isn't here? Funny, I thought that you would have been waiting to strike up a re-match. Don't you find that kind of activity far more appealing than idle chit-chat?"

Karofsky's eyes flashed at the mention of the Gryffindor Chaser but he squirmed at the words that Kurt spoke, biting into him.

"Okay, yeah, I wanted to speak to you without _him, -_" He said the word in contempt, "-butting in, satisfied?"

"No, not really." Kurt said sharply. "Now if you would just get out of my way-"

Karofsky held firm, eyes strained and mouth pursed as he tried to find the words.

"Kurt I-"

"There's nothing you can say to me, Karofsky," Kurt interrupted before he had a chance to explain anything. "You terrorised me all of last year and I know all about the foul words you speak, the brutal way you act and your capability to deliver death threats." His own personal one reverberated around the walls of his mind, leaving an unpleasant twist in the pit of his stomach. "So no, I do not wish to speak to you and I shall only say this once: Stay away from me."

And with that he turned on his heel and carried along his path towards his next lesson, hardly being able to contain the anger from swelling up inside of him and bursting from every inch of his body like the confinement of a blood-curdling scream.

* * *

><p>"You're going to have to talk to us about it sometime," Santana said, the three girls were sat in the corner of The Three Broomsticks, Brittany's head rested on her hands, which lay on the table, while Santana sat back, arms folded and looking at the third member of the party.<p>

Quinn did not reply, but stared resolutely out of the window whilst her hands encased her baby bump protectively.

"We're like… worried about you," Brittany added, glancing up at her friend whose expression did not waver.

Santana sighed loudly and slapped her hand on the table, leaning forward and demanding focus:

"Look, Brit and I have been patient enough for the past couple of weeks. We stayed out of your way, we tried not to force you into saying anything, but we've had enough, okay? We get that you're all bent out of shape about all of this baby crap, it kind of sucks or whatever, but that doesn't mean you get to do us out of an explanation. I mean Christ, Queen of Celibacy, since when did _you_ lose it anyway?"

Santana finally took a breath, but Quinn remained fixed in her position when she offered a reply: "Although your concern is touching, - " She said with a sarcastic note, " – I do not _have_ to tell you anything, and I would prefer to keep it that way."

"Well, you kind of do because it's sort of obvious what's wrong with you…" Brittany said innocently, looking up at Quinn's stomach. "You can't expect us to ignore it…"

"Yeah, and you're blatantly on the verge of popping since you look like an illustration for a Yo Mamma So Fat joke." Santana finished with a comment on Quinn's size.

She decided to pass over this particular statement: "I'm fine. It'll come out; I'll get rid of it. End of story."

"Jesus, that is so not the end of the story. Will you please get over yourself and just tell us?"

"Surely it's the beginning of the story we should be filled in on anyway…" Brittany said, her face scrunched up in light confusion.

"Exactly! Now we get to the good stuff: who is the guy that removed that well-fastened chastity belt and-"

"Just lay off, okay!"

Quinn had finally snapped.

She turned to the pair of them ferociously, Brittany wide-eyed in shock as she lifted her head from the table and recoiled slightly, Santana keeping her steely expression, arms still hugged tightly to her chest as she returned the Ravenclaw's glare.

"I get why you're curious and everything, but this is _my_ life, _my_ problem and _my _baby. So I am going to deal with it how I like, because that is the only thing I get to control right about now. I didn't choose to get burdened with this, but it happened and from here on out I'm the one who gets to decide. And if that leaves you out in the cold in terms of idle gossip, then I am sorry, but that will just be something that you'll have to get used to."

With that the beautiful blonde girl stood up abruptly, one hand on her stomach.

"We don't want to know for idle gossip; we want to know that you're okay." Brittany insisted.

"I don't know; since she's being such a stuck up cow, I wouldn't say that my motivations are wholly pure." Santana said spitefully.

"Santana!" Brittany scolded, turning to the Hispanic girl and causing her to be silenced.

If Quinn hadn't been fuming she may have noticed this peculiar new power that Brittany held over the bitchy Slytherin.

She sighed; "I'm not asking you to understand why I am doing this, but please, just respect it."

And with that she left the pub and her two friends alone.

Santana stood up also, a perplexing expression laid across her face now as she avoided Brittany's gaze.

"Santana-" The Hufflepuff began.

"I have to go," The girl beside her retorted, she made her way towards the door at lightening pace, but stopped just prior to leaving when a saddened voice behind her asked a question:

"Why do you keep avoiding me lately?" Brittany asked, her eyes downcast and fixed on the table.

Santana froze, fingertips just grazing upon the door handle.

Brittany looked up and their eyes met for a long while.

"Did I do something wrong?"

Santana pursed her lips. "No I…. I just have to go."

She wrenched her eyes away from her best friend and went through the door, leaving the bewildered blonde girl behind her.

Santana stepped out into the cool air, wind whipping her sleek black hair in various directions as she tried to look around past the tears, which burned hotly in her eyes.

She wiped them away angrily with the back of her sleeve and carried on walking up the path which led towards the castle.

Guilt flooded through her, hammering at her heart and pummelling her stomach raw until she felt as though she had been left bruised all over.

It wasn't her fault; Brittany was the most caring person she had ever known. She was the sweetest girl and she had her own unique intelligence that was rarely realised by anyone else other than the girl who now strode through the darkened paths of Hogsmeade.

In a way, Santana could see a future with Brittany in her mind's eye as she walked. She knew it was possible; she knew that Brittany could love her; she knew it could be perfect.

But she also knew that it might not be. That her love might not be returned and that the troubles that would face the both of them if they were ever to have an official relationship could damage them both entirely. It was not so simple, or at least it didn't seem to be. Santana couldn't help but be scared, after all her cut-throat remarks and confident outpourings, she was just as insecure as anyone else who walked the halls of Hogwarts, and she couldn't help but let those negative thoughts overwhelm her. She wrapped her arms around torso and breathed in deeply.

_You'll take me on a journey_

_And be there till the end_

_It won't be an uphill struggle_

_On you I can depend_

_You promised me a dream home_

_With roses round the door_

_You'll cover me in diamonds_

_There's nothing I want more_

_And_

_You'll be strong_

_And you'll turn me on_

_But I've got my doubts and what if I'm right?_

_You'll be true and be faithful too_

_But I've got my doubts and what if I'm right?_

_What if I'm right?_

_'cos if the rain starts falling_

_You'll protect me with your coat_

_And you'll always tape the football_

_And let me watch my soap_

_You'll always be as handsome_

_And your weight will never gain_

_And when I give birth to our children_

_I will feel no pain_

_And_

_You'll bring me flowers_

_And you'll run me showers_

_But I've got my doubts and what if I'm right?_

_You'll say I'm thin and bring the washing in_

_But I've got my doubts and what if I'm right?_

_What if I'm right?_

_You'll always keep the magic_

_The tender love and care_

_And when you need to change the light bulb_

_You wont hand me the chair_

_And when we're tired of the city_

_And we find a country home_

_You'll sell your vinyl records_

_And go get us a loan_

_You'll be my sympathetic lover_

_And won't steal the covers_

_But I've got my doubts and what if I'm right?_

_You won't forsake me_

_Your mother won't hate me_

_But I've got my doubts and what if I'm right?_

_You'll be strong_

_And you'll turn me on_

_But I've got my doubts and what if I'm right?_

_You'll be true_

_And be faithful too_

_But I've got my doubts and what if I'm right?_

_What if I'm right?_

* * *

><p>Kurt and Finn sat together in the library, trying to cram in some last minute studying before having to return to the common room where any form of revision would be rendered impossible by bustling Gryffindor's who disapproved of their designated bed time.<p>

"I don't understand this!" Kurt exclaimed, irritated as he chucked his quill across the room.

"Accio," Finn murmured so that it flew back to them as Kurt buried his head under his hands, forehead laying on the desk.

"Do you get this?" He asked, exasperated.

Finn snorted. "If you don't understand it, how am I supposed to?"

Kurt propped himself up on his elbow and rolled his eyes spitefully at his homework. "Good. Let's give up on it then. Common room?"

He wanted to go and find Blaine. He had been pulled off by Wes, David and Trent earlier but he would probably have returned to the dormitory by now…

"Kurt, I need to talk to you about something," Finn said with a suddenly serious edge to his voice.

Kurt looked up from his wistful stares to the bookcase opposite to frown at his brother, since he could not fathom the intention behind his desired discussion.

Finn returned his gaze warily and this told Kurt instantly that he would not like the topic of conversation that was about to arise.

"Do you promise not to be angry with me?" He said, sounding so anxious by his question that Kurt felt guilty already before he'd even said anything.

He took a deep breath, "That depends, is it something I'd have a valid reason to be angry about?"

Finn looked skywards and twisted his mouth thoughtfully, "Well, you were the last time I brought it up."

And Kurt instantly knew what his brother was angling to discuss. His face fell and crumpled as he looked up at the Gryffindor Keeper in despair.

"Can we not?" He pleaded. "I really, _really _don't want to talk about it."

Finn pursed his lips, but shook his head relentlessly. "You can't expect me to ignore it… or any of us to for that matter. It was pretty damn hard to miss it when you walked through that portrait completely pulverised."

Kurt swallowed and looked down at his study materials, thinking that even another Herbology lesson would have been a more welcome circumstance than this conversation.

"You_ promised_ me that you would tell Burt."

And there was the guilt he had predicted, rising to his throat as he exhaled deeply.

"I… I tried."

"When?" Finn said, the question sounding more like a demand as he gained a new vigour to his side of the interrogation.

Kurt licked his lips and shuffled uncomfortably in his seat.

"A couple times."

His brother sighed. "Could you try and respect me enough not to lie to my face, Kurt?"

The bitterness to his voice was impossible to misinterpret now and Kurt looked up at the taller boy, a grimace set on his face.

"Sorry," He whispered.

Finn seemed to feel a little guilty himself now, as he looked into those sorrowful eyes; "It's okay… I still want an explanation though."

"I was afraid to tell him… and of what he might have done had he heard about it." Kurt admitted, twisting his fingers together in his lap.

"Why? You usually trust your Dad with this sort of thing, don't you?" Finn asked, sitting back and surveying the suddenly very quiet boy before him – an uncharacteristic trait amongst his usually exuberant personality.

"I know… it's not so much an issue of trust. It's more that I just didn't want to upset him… and I don't really want to talk about anything to do with… him anymore." Kurt didn't even want to speak his name; he wanted to forget it along with his face; his voice; his crushing fists…

Finn placed his hand on Kurt's shoulder tentatively, not very well adjusted to affectionate gestures; "I realise that this has been really tough on you, Kurt, I get that. I do. But don't you think it would be easier to talk about it?"

"I do talk about it," Kurt said instantly. "Or at least I did."

"Maybe to someone besides Blaine?" Finn suggested.

Kurt frowned and looked back to his brother once more; "What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing," Finn said quickly. "I mean, it's good that he was there to vent to, but don't you think it would be better if you could talk to someone who could…you know… _do _something about it?"

Kurt hesitated for a moment, contemplating these words, before shaking his head. "What, so you want me to tell my Dad so that he can charge into this school, guns blazing and shout down every teacher or Slytherin who crosses his path, only to end up collapsing on the floor because of his condition?"

Even Kurt winced at his own description. "No thanks."

"A teacher then," Finn insisted, a desperate edge to his voice as he bounced the balls of his feet, trying to convince his new sibling.

"They won't listen," Kurt said glumly.

"Hogwarts teachers aren't like the ones at our old schools, Kurt, they actually give a damn about what happens to us here, I'm sure that if you just-"

"Please, Finn," Kurt's voice sounded slightly broken as he resorted to pleading with his brother; "I really… I just can't - not right now. I can't talk about it."

"You talked to Blaine, you said it yourself." Finn said, not giving up just yet. He had seen over the course of last year, the effect the Karofsky situation had had on his brother, had seen it takes its toll and pull him apart, stretching him think like a sheet of cellophane. It had been horrific to watch and he wanted him to finish it. To be able to completely put it behind him and move on, to feel safe and at ease within the halls of Hogwarts again. All though Kurt claimed to feel no fear of the Slytherin since returning this year, Finn saw it differently. He may be dense on a lot of things, but he could tell that each time Kurt turned a corner he braced himself, that he was forever wary of walking on his own when it got dark or staying out too late into the night time. The past events had corrupted his enjoyment of the castle when everything about it should fill him with hope and comfort.

And Finn couldn't deal with him keeping the secret from Burt most of all, because sometimes people just needed to step up and reveal some dark truths to those who needed to hear it. The problem was that the ones who had to hear such things the most were often the ones that the person would be most frightened to tell. That was why the secrets were reigned in, and that is exactly what drove the tall Gryffindor crazy.

He'd had enough of secrets, especially those that he was forced to keep.

"I used to talk to Blaine… we haven't discussed it in a while and I would prefer to keep it that way." Kurt said with an edge of melancholia to his tone, his eyes downcast and the shadows of his eyelashes falling across his face.

"Why?" Finn asked again, but this time genuinely confused by the conclusions of the boy who sat beside him, shoulders hunched and breathing sharp.

"Because look where involving him in the situation led. Do you not see how bringing him into the middle of everything almost endangered his position within Hogwarts? He could have been _expelled _Finn. Then what would he do with himself? I just…"

"Kurt, that wasn't your fault!" Finn exclaimed, jutting his head forward as he gaped at him, having not expected such a grim answer.

"How? How was that not my fault? I told him about…Karofsky-" He finally said the name reluctantly "-the way he treated me led Blaine to try and defend me, and that meant that Karofsky then attacked him and almost drove him out of the castle for good."

Finn just gave him a blank stare. "You know you're reading way too much into this, right?"

Kurt pursed his lips.

He didn't get it.

He loved his new-found brother, but he just didn't understand the link between him and Blaine, the pain he felt over any kind of responsibility he had over the entire affair. The hatred he had in his heart for the Slytherin, and the love he held in it for the Gryffindor. He wanted those two things forever separated, and since he wanted Blaine in his life as much as possible, he also wanted Karofsky out of it to the same extent.

Finn sighed.

"I still think you need to tell someone. You need to report it."

Kurt was getting nowhere with this discussion; it only went in full circle and he was tired. He did not want to argue with Finn. He wanted to go and bury his head under his pillow.

"I'll think about it." He said, and Finn knew this was going to be the best answer he could pull from the countertenor, since he did not want to anger Kurt himself.

* * *

><p>Hello Readers!<p>

Did you miss me?

Okay, maybe not me, but the story! I know that I have been stingy on you for the last few days, but I have an excuse: I got my A Level results yesterday, and guess what?

I'M GOING TO UNIVERSITY TO STUDY ENGLISH!

I know many of you may not care, but I just love saying it, so here I am doing so :D

Anyway, I have left you here with some lovely Furt times before the next chapter. Okay, maybe not particularly 'lovely' Furt times, but the sentiment of brotherly love and the need to protect one another is still there.

Oh, I have a feeling some of you will get angry with me for the next chapter, but hold tight and bear with me for just a little while longer.

Sorry, am I being cryptic again?

Thank you all again for reviewing thus far! I hope that you have not tired of me yet and continue to read this, because I have been writing some super fun future chapters that I am so looking forward to showing you all!

Love to you all!


	22. Chapter 21: Fighting

Chapter Twenty-One: Fighting

(Songs: Daniel Beddingfield - If You're Not The One)

* * *

><p>Rachel had been on her way to Charms when she heard them.<p>

At first she merely caught a muffle of voices, barely audible above the clamour of students swirling around her at that moment, but instantly recognizable.

She turned her head around in various directions in her attempts to discover the whereabouts of these voices and her pace slowed and brow furrowed in confusion and worry.

Finally, she deduced that the noise was emitting from one of the classrooms that lay to her left and so she crept over to them, trying at first to press her ear to the wooden frame of the door. However, this still made it impossible to distinguish actual words, even though their impassioned tones were now clear to identify.

Unable to quench her curiosity and confusion she pushed open the door.

The sight that met her eyes was even more bewildering and troubling than the sound of the two boys that stood before her now.

Jesse and Finn squared up to each other, mirror images of clenched jaws and fists with red tints to their complexions - even though Finn was clearly the taller reflection. They continued to spit words at each other, oblivious to the Gryffindor girl's presence as she hovered behind the door, peeking through fractionally to spy the sight.

"If you go near her again, Jesse, I swear to God…" Finn growled.

"What? Go on; tell me what you're going to do. You attempting to fight makes me want to laugh more than you attempting even the simplest dance move without looking like a drunken giant. Besides, you know very well that you lack the ability to prevent me from seeing her," Jesse said. He seemed cooler about the situation than Finn.

"She doesn't want you."

"I think we both know that isn't true." Jesse laughed in genuine amusement. "And why are you so fussed about it? If she wants to spend time with me, is that not her choice?"

"She doesn't know what she wants," Finn exclaimed, throwing his hands out jerkily in front of himself now; "Don't you think you've done enough?"

"What do you mean? I haven't-"

Jesse paused mid-sentence.

Rachel had been so wrapped up in her eavesdropping that she had not realized how hard she had been leaning against the door. It turned out to be too much as just at the moment when Jesse had begun his last sentence it had creaked under her weight and both boy's eyes snapped to her.

Finn looked away in anger to the back of the classroom.

Jesse took a different approach, smiling pleasantly and proceeding to walk towards Rachel smugly. His face looked far too content in contrast to how it had been only a moment before, during the quarrel, and his sudden alteration disturbed her slightly: could he always so easily switch between emotions at will? Or pretend to…

He took her hand then and her doubt was quickly removed by light-headedness, forgetting what had just been on her mind and replacing it with thoughts of how his eyes could sparkle even in the dim light of the classroom.

"I have to go to Arithmancy," He said in a soft purr, "See you at dinner?"

Rachel nodded.

Jesse gave her one more quick smile, secure that he had won her over before he turned to give Finn one final glance. Then the Slytherin bent his head down and kissed Rachel on the lips.

On a normal occasion, Rachel would have responded enthusiastically, however at that moment she was very aware of the Gryffindor Keeper's eyes and so pulled away from her boyfriend to look up at his hurt expression instead.

Jesse saw this exchange.

This, rather than the argument with Finn just prior, seemed to annoy him the most and he shot Rachel a dark look, scowled and exited the room with a slight slam of the door, which caused her to jump.

She glanced up at Finn again, who stood with his hands shoved deep within his pockets, staring up at the ceiling.

"Are… Are you okay?" She asked hesitantly.

He obviously wasn't.

Finn looked down at her, pain clear behind his eyes, yet he nodded all the same.

"I know that you're upset… but I really wish you two could just get along," Rachel said in a miserable voice.

Finn blew out a long breath and shook his head, looking to the floor now; "I'm sorry, Rachel, but that is never going to happen."

"Why not?" She demanded, stepping forwards.

He carried on shaking his head, unwilling to explain as he changed the direction of his eyes to the window…anywhere but the face of the brunette before him.

"Look, I don't expect you to be the best of friends, but a bit of civility wouldn't go amiss," She said, trying not to sound too bossy or sulky, which was hard, given her usual countenance.

"No offence, Rachel, but you really have no idea what you're talking about."

Rachel furrowed her brow, staring at him across the distance between them, He returned her gaze for a moment and sighed once more.

"Don't worry about it."

She coughed an unamused laugh, "Well, I think I have to worry about it somewhat; I'm involved in this too!"

Finn broke into a humourless smile as he closed his eyes in exasperation: "Seriously, forget you heard this, it's better for everyone."

"I'm not going to just stand by and watch you fight!" Rachel retorted, a little irritated now.

"It's not what you think, so just leave it be." Finn was kind of begging her to now.

"Of course it's what I think; what else could it be?" She asked shrilly.

Finn, already on edge from the previous argument, rounded on the tiny Gryffindor.

"My God, you are bloody unbelievable!" He walked towards her purposefully until his great height loomed over her. "You don't think that Jesse and I have anything besides you to discuss? Yeah, you broke my heart and yeah, you don't seem to care about that-" Finn's voice was wrought with anguish at that statement "- but that doesn't mean that you are always the centre of attention - with me _or_ with him. The sooner you grow up and accept that, the sooner you might realise what's actually going on here!"

Rachel looked up at him, angry, puzzled and frustrated. "Well you clearly want to keep it a secret!"

Finn looked at her, eyes wide and considerably softer now, as though he were trying to tell her something important embedded in his irises.

"No, Rachel, I want you to know more than anything."

Rachel faltered. "Tell me what it is then!"

He clenched his jaw tighter and looked up at the ceiling once more, struggling to find strength in his resolve. "I can't."

He seemed to reject the words even as he spoke them, as though the secret were a burden that was too heavy to bear.

"Why?" She asked in a strangled voice of desperation, trying to understand.

"Believe me, Rachel, if I could tell you I would."

Rachel was now slightly alarmed by the intensity of his words and the ferocious glint still emanating from his eyes.

She only realised now how close their bodies stood across from the other, mere inches apart so that she could smell his skin through his robes.

She could tell by the look on his face that he was also aware of the close proximity.

"It isn't my place to tell," Finn whispered in an angst-ridden manner and he put his hands to his face, he ran one through his hair and brought the other down slowly, "I shouldn't be here with you."

They stared at each other for another moment, leaning closer together like they had no power over their bodies before he suddenly shut his eyes and pulled back.

"I gotta go."

He made for the door, but before he closed it behind him Rachel blurted out:

"You're wrong."

She could tell that he was frozen in the doorway, even though her back was turned to him and quickly swivelled around to face him so that he could see her eyes and the sincerity within them:

"What you said… about me not caring… I do care. And I am sorry for the way things have gone. But if you think that I don't care… Well, then you really do not know me very well at all."

Finn stared at her for one more second, taking in the words, but unable to return ones of his own, just managing to nod in acceptance and in apology before closing the door behind him.

* * *

><p>Karofsky's eyes seemed to follow him around like a sniper's gun. He felt uneasy every lesson when he felt them boring into him, not allowing him to concentrate, yet in a far less welcome way than the distractions Blaine had presented to him. He felt disturbed and queasy each time he realised and he wished that he could tell him to just go away. Technically, he had left Kurt alone all this time since they had spoken, but it was not enough. Just the stares on their own left him with an unsettled clench in the pit of his stomach; blackening and spreading over him like a veil of anxiety.<p>

What was his game? What did he want from him?

Mostly he strived to ignore such locked eyes on the back or side of his face, but occasionally he would accidently meet his gaze, or do so deliberately just to check that he was not crazy to think that they still held focus upon him. He was never mistaken and he stared back into those small eyes and felt himself wither with a mixture or fear and confusion. Yet mostly anger.

Anger because he dared to be doing this, dared to intrude into Kurt's life in even the subtlest way. Anger because he was tired. Sick and tired of his persistent presence in his life when it was not wanted. Tired because the energy spent trying to understand or to escape such circumstances exhausted him emotionally so that he felt constantly drained. How could so simple an act cause him such misery?

He only prayed that Blaine did not notice also, because he was deathly afraid that such realisation would cause the technically-older Gryffindor to do something drastic. Something stupid. Something dangerous. And Kurt would do anything to prevent that from happening. Because Blaine's insistence to forever protect Kurt, whatever Finn had said, never failed to cause him pain himself, and in turn that hurt the countertenor further. Worse than anything Karofsky's fists or words could bring upon him.

* * *

><p>Blaine wasn't stupid. He may goof around a little in lessons, but he still noticed things - especially things that revolved around Kurt.<p>

He noticed the way that Karofsky looked at him; he had thought that he had seen it last year; thought he knew the odd looks he gave Kurt, who was so naïve to these sorts of things, and so missed their meaning entirely. However, now, and especially after their dual last year, it was becoming impossible to misinterpret and even harder to ignore.

So how could Kurt not realise?

Did he notice?

Did he know?

Did he not mind?

Did he _like_ it?

Those types of question squelched around the back of Blaine's mind like slimy substances, oozing seeds of doubt and fear in a putrid green and greasy liquid, which spread through him whenever he saw those dark eyes on Kurt, saw them watching with a vile longing.

Blaine could not stomach to look at his gaze, it made him feel sick and twist uncomfortably. Yet he also found it harder and harder to look away, or to stop trying to gage Kurt's reaction.

The wide majority of the time the countertenor would not notice, he would have his head down, studying hard as always and so would miss the transfixed state of the Slytherin across the room.

Whenever Blaine did catch a glimpse of recognition from the younger Gryffindor, however, he would often avert his gaze, but from time to time he would hold eye contact for a moment, brow furrowed, until Karofsky realised he had been caught.

What did that mean?

Could the aversions of eye contact derive from guilt? Could it be like the flirtatious seconds he had thought that himself and Kurt shared at times?  
>Was he wrong about their interchanges, or his own, or both?<p>

And at the times where he held his gaze, was it to figure out the Slytherin's intentions? Or was it more than that? Had they talked with one another since last year? There had definitely been some alteration in how they responded to the other over the past week, but Blaine could not put a finger on what that was exactly.

Nothing to do with Karofsky ever gave him any degree of comfort, and with these new feelings that Blaine recognised within him, he could only sense trouble brewing on the horizon, and that filled him with dread.

* * *

><p>Kurt made Mercedes leave Divination as soon as the lesson had ended, all though he did not tell her that the reason for his urgency was to run away from the dark eyes which had been drilling into his skull for the entirety of the last hour. No, she did not need to be made aware of that part.<p>

The pair was surprised to find David awaiting them outside the classroom, leant against the wall at the bottom of the steps, holding the books for his next class casually under his arm and smiling pleasantly at them as they exited tower.

"Hello," Mercedes said brightly and he returned an equally bright and genuine smile in return. "What brings you to our boring 6th Year lessons?"

"Well, I am afraid it has a little something to this guy over here," David smirked, jabbing his thumb at the wide-eyed countertenor as his heart leapt a little, suspecting what it could be to do with. "However, that is not to say I am not just as thrilled to see you here too, how is the New Year at Hogwarts treating you thus far?"

Mercedes shrugged and pulled a face; "Same classes, same teachers, new work, new levels of difficulty – the positives aren't coming along in abundance."

David snickered; "Find out your grim futures at all today? Are you going to be attacked by a hoard of ravenous chipmunks?-" Mercedes giggled "- You laugh, but I promise you, that is what she predicted of my 5th Year here. I am quite glad that one didn't pan out, actually…"

Kurt was becoming impatient, as he knew that David was keeping quiet about something to do with Blaine, and he was sure that he was withholding the information deliberately. To infuriate him

David grinned at him, confirming his suspicions.

However, just then his face fell as he spied something just behind them both.

Kurt looked round, Mercedes following in quick succession, to see Karofsky descending the stairs.

He had had his eyes stuck on Kurt once more, but now that he realised such fixations had been noticed, he turned his head to confer with the other Slytherin boy beside him as he passed by them.

David looked as though his blood had run cold, and for once he looked at Kurt with a serious expression; "Has he been bothering you?"

Kurt looked away and said quickly; "No."

Mercedes seemed suddenly alarmed by this, having not suspected anything until David had drawn it into the open. Kurt was going to find it hard to forgive him for that.

"He's not been bugging you again? Are you sure? He was… Staring at you really weirdly…" David muttered darkly.

"Kurt…?" Mercedes asked, voice dripping with concern and he looked up at her, shaking his head immediately.

"It's nothing. He hasn't done anything." He said, neglecting to mention the conversation between them previously that had occurred on this very staircase.

Neither of them seemed convinced. "You would tell us about it though, wouldn't you?"

Kurt hesitated, but nodded once.

David and Mercedes glanced at one another, synchronised biting of lips following this response.

"Blaine says he will be meeting you after Care of Magical Creatures," David said, delivering the message now in a slightly disheartened voice, his previous vibrancy having dwindled from the recent worry arising.

Kurt nodded again, sure that words would fail him as he looked far away from the his two friends, not wanting them to see the anguish the previous conversation had struck upon his face.

David looked down at Mercedes, and mouthed; "Talk to him," silently. He knew that it was not his place to pester the Gryffindor boy he had only known briefly, but that if anyone were going to get a real answer out of him, it would be the girl before him now. He patted her on the shoulder lightly before departing.

Kurt did not take kindly to such a talk, however, and he refused to answer Mercedes' questions as they walked to Care of Magical Creatures. He did not do so harshly, because he did not want to upset his best friend, but he just acted distant an unresponsive, and eventually she gave up, but adding lastly;

"You need to do something about whatever it is, Kurt, you need to face up to whatever it is that is going on. You can't do this to yourself again. It's not healthy."

When would people stop telling him what he couldn't do? What he needed? Was he no longer allowed to decide such things for himself? Or be given the opportunity to think it all over alone for just one moment? Would he be able to have that moment of solitary thought without everyone throwing in their two cents every five minutes?

The only thought that made him feel slightly more sane while these conflictions pulled at his extremities, was that he would be seeing Blaine soon, and could forget about anything and everything to do with Karofsky.

* * *

><p>Kurt and Blaine were walking along the bridge after Kurt's Care of Magical Creatures lesson, Blaine having met up with the younger Gryffindor as promised, since they did not share the subject. They were out in the cloudy grounds of Hogwarts where a light mist shrouded the castle from view and a faint drizzle gradually dampened them from when they had walked across the grounds. Tiny silvery beads of due were sprinkled over Kurt's hair, an addition that the younger Gryffindor would undoubtedly be appalled by, but Blaine found them oddly beautiful, like twinkling jewels.<p>

He collected himself, however, as he needed to ask – he _had _to ask. His body screamed out for an answer to the question that beat inside his chest.

"Kurt…?" Blaine began and the countertenor turned his face towards the vocalist expectantly, eyes glowing even brighter in contrast to the dull background of the weather where black clouds had started to swirl in the sky.

_Focus, Blaine, focus_, he told himself.

"Have you… err… talked to Karofsky recently?" He asked, feeling the thudding of his heart and thankful that he had his hands in his pockets so that Kurt could not see the sweat glistening off of them.

"No."

The answer was so blunt, in a flat moment that ended with Kurt tearing away his sapphire eyes to look ahead, so that Blaine knew he was lying.

"Are you sure?"

"Mmhmm," Kurt hummed unconvincingly.

His entire countenance seemed to suddenly turn very icy. He was closing off, shutting himself away from Blaine. It was odd, very odd: he'd never withheld any information from him before and it unsettled the older Gryffindor greatly.

"Because… he's acting kind of differently towards you," Blaine tried to continue.

"How do you mean?" Kurt asked quickly, a slight heightening of interest colouring his tone. What did that mean? Did he look favourably upon the idea?

Blaine felt his stomach drop into a black abyss.

"…Just different, I don't know how to explain it," Was all he could conjure up for an answer and he spoke the words slowly, trying to survey Kurt's reaction.

He averted his gaze stiffly.

"Well, if you don't know what it is, then there is really little point in continuing this conversation… so if you don't mind-"

"Kurt," Blaine caught him by the wrist as he tried to speed his pace away from him. He did not hold it too tightly, just enough to keep Kurt there with him. "What's going on?"

"Nothing!" Kurt snapped. More lies.

Blaine pressed his lips together and swallowed, forcing himself to remain reserved. Kurt seemed to notice this and his eyes widened fearfully and Blaine couldn't help but worry that the fear derived from a place of guilt.

"It isn't nothing," He breathed as Kurt licked his lips nervously.

Kurt retrieved his hand, and hugged both arms to his chest. "Look, I don't want to talk about Karofsky, ever, okay? Just drop it, Blaine. There's nothing more to say."

"But Kurt, I-"

"I said drop it!" Kurt said with a new edge to his voice that he had never used with Blaine before. The cut of the words and the pierce of his eyes seemed to slice into Blaine's sternum like a sword, just scratching his heart with the tip. He stood frozen, as Kurt turned away from him and walked back towards the castle.

Blaine stood for what felt like an age before feeling his legs give out so that he had to clutch one of the pillars lining the bridge for support.

He had never known Kurt to be that way. It was not as though they had had an official fight, but the words of dismissal that had escaped the younger Gryffindor's lips seemed to shatter him completely. They rocked the secure world he thought the two of them had resided in, making those small squelching doubts that still clung to the walls of his mind turn into colossal giants as it now filled with twisted image of Karofsky and Kurt.

He tried to push them out of his mind, but he also couldn't help but remember that such flashes of his imagination were closer to the truth than any fantasies of himself and Kurt had been.

They had kissed.

Karofsky had felt Kurt's soft lips against his own and that fact was tormenting enough to chill Blaine to his core.

He found himself sitting huddled on the bridge before he knew how he had got there, unsure if the dampness on his face was rain or tears.

Kurt always talked to him, never neglected to share information with him. Least of all about Karofsky – what could be so private about that subject now? Blaine had been with him every step of the way last year. Hell, he had ended up getting suspended because of his involvement. Not that he regretted doing so, he never would, nor would he ever blame Kurt for such a thing but he couldn't comprehend why Kurt was refusing to include him in whatever it was about Karofsky that now unnerved him.

Blaine thrust his hands into his hair and raked them through it.

How could he be feeling like this? It was unbearable; every thought alluding to this situation felt like another knife to his chest or gut. It physically pained him as though there was a restriction that plugged the channel between his lungs and his mouth, causing him to shudder through each breath as the horizontal rain targeted him, soaking him to the bone.

* * *

><p>Rachel found Jesse eventually, sitting in the library on his own, reading one of his Defence against the Dark Arts books. She went over and put both hands on his shoulders, leaning over to kiss him on the lips. But they remained frozen in place.<p>

She dragged her hands across his upper back as she went to sit beside him, a perplexed expression on her face as she looked at him, his attention still fixed on the pages before him.

"What's wrong?" She asked, concerned.

He turned a page and answered systematically; "I simply find it hard to consider your kiss genuine when you were so reluctant to return my own earlier today."

She gave him a baffled expression, which he pretended not to notice.

"You're upset about that?"

"I wouldn't say upset," Jesse answered, placing the book down finally and turning towards her with a penetrating stare that made her feel guilty without even understanding her crime. "More curious."

She looked a little crestfallen; "Why?"

"I think that you know why."

He returned to the book coldly.

Rachel swallowed. "Okay, so I didn't want to kiss you in front of Finn. How can you hold that against me? You and I both know how fragile he is in regards to our relationship. I didn't want to rub salt in the wound: he is still my friend, you know."

Jesse snorted. "_If _your friendship is all that you deem valuable in that oaf."

"Don't call him that," Rachel snapped. "He's not an oaf, he's-"

Jesse slammed the book down. "Go on. I would just _love_ to hear the end of that sentence."

He gazed at her for a moment, nostrils flaring with suppressed rage.

"Can we not talk about Finn?" Rachel whispered imploringly, wanting the argument to cease as she glanced at the disapproving glare of Madame Pince, who in no way approved of one slamming books.

"No," Jesse commanded, leaning forward dramatically; "I think that he is an ample topic of conversation, and one that you are always so insistent to avoid. I for one would like to know why that is."

She opened her mouth to reply, but found it difficult to string words together all of a sudden.

"I… I don't know."

Jesse stood up sharply and swung his bag over his shoulder.

"Well, please come and tell me once you've figured that one out, would you? Until then, I think it is best if you and I spend some time apart."

* * *

><p>Kurt sat outside of Hagrid's hut, waiting for his body to heat up against the chilled autumnal weather, brown and red leaves slicing through the air, bolstered along by the violent wind.<p>

The gameskeeper had already left to go and collect creatures from the Forbidden Forest for tomorrow's lesson, but Kurt had not yet found the strength to return to the castle.

He had been spending the last few evenings visiting Hagrid now, and even though the half-giant was glad to have the company, he couldn't help but be a little suspicious of the sudden frequency.

"Everythin' all right with yeh Kurt, ain't it?" He had asked him towards the end of their last conversation.

Kurt had looked up fro his Butterbeer and untouched rock cake, the bottom of his glass having occupied his attention for the last few minutes while he listened to Hagrid's aspirations of owning a dragon.

"Yes," He lied, not that it had fooled his friend.

"Where's tha' boy yeh always hang around wiv nowadays? Not had a fallin' out, have yeh?"

Kurt sighed. "Sort of."

It was not as though their confrontation on the bridge had been anything major, the pair by no means hated one another, but since then they had kept their distance. This filled Kurt with miserable thoughts and feelings of dread, which consumed him, yet he was too afraid to be the one who closed the space that seemed to stretch for an age between them.

"Well, I'm sure tha' whatever it is, the two of yeh'll work it out." Hagrid tried to assure him. "Tha' Blaine seems like a good lad."

As Kurt sat on the step now, remembering the brief exchange of words, he couldn't help but still feel uneasy.

Blaine was a "good lad" as Hagrid put it. He was the embodiment of good. It had been he, Kurt, who had acted unfairly and lashed out when the older Gryffindor was merely trying to watch out for him, as always.

What if Blaine was truly angry with him for what had happened on the bridge? Was he shutting Blaine out now just as he had done last year with Mercedes, Rachel and Finn?

They had stuck by him at that time, even when he had been so dismissive, would Blaine be as willing? He felt his heart ache as he thought of how unreasonable he had been before, and possibly how he was being so to the same extent now. What good had it done him to close off to his friends? And now to do the same with Blaine… Surely he was only letting Karofsky win by doing that?

Then again, perhaps it was better this way; Blaine wouldn't be hurt when he was no longer around Kurt's toxicity. If he were angry he wouldn't want to protect Kurt any longer, which would mean he would be less likely to confront Karofsky and jeopardise his position at Hogwarts further. Maybe it was for the best; maybe Kurt should stop acting so selfishly.

But then he wanted to have Blaine in his life so badly, and he wasn't willing to give up; he wasn't willing to let go yet. But, perhaps it was already too late for that… What if Kurt's reluctance to discuss Karofsky, who he would rather banish from his mind and proximity for all eternity, ended up ruining his chances with the vocalist and was actually helping to drive a wedge between them?

Even as he thought it, he couldn't help but emit a noise of disgust to himself as he looked away across the darkening grounds at the tall trees that loomed over him from the Forbidden Forest. What chances?

How could he possibly think that he stood any likelihood of being with Blaine? Blaine didn't think of him that way. Blaine _couldn't _think of him that way. They had been close friends for so long that he was sure Blaine did not look at him like that. If he ever had. And why would he? Who would look at him that way?

It was hopeless.

And yet even as he thought this, a strange pull inside of him seemed to force its way forward. Because it occurred to Kurt that as unlikely as his desires were to be realised, they also seemed to be the only possible conclusion. How could he not end up with Blaine? He thoroughly rejected the idea of the two of them ever being apart; no matter what good it may do the older Gryffindor. They felt as though they were made for each other. He had never been so drawn to another human being in his life and that had to count for something… surely?

_If you're not the one then why does my soul feel glad today?_

_If you're not the one then why does my hand fit yours this way?_

_If you are not mine then why does your heart return my calls?_

_If you are not mine would I have the strength to stand at all?_

Kurt stood up himself then and walked along the gravel path at a slow pace as the sun sank down behind him, burrowing beneath the hills in the distance and causing his shadow to stretch and dance out in front of him as he swallowed and breathed in deeply.

_But I know you're here with me now_

_We'll make it through and I hope you are the one I share my life with…_

_I don't wanna run away, but I can't take it_

_- I don't understand_

_If I'm not made for you then why does my heart tell me that I am?_

He put a hand over his chest, and gripped the fabric of his shirt tightly as his pace quickened and his hand shot out to one side instead.

_Is there any way that I could stay in your arms?_

He allowed the high-pitch note to linger in the air as tiny droplets of tears fell from his eyes.

_If I don't need you then why am I crying on my bed?_

_If I don't need you then why does your name resound in my head?_

_If you're not for me then why does this distance maim my life?_

_If you're not for me then why do I dream of you all the time?_

_I don't know why you're so far away, but I know this much is true_

_We'll make it through and I hope you are the one I share my life with_

_And I wish you could be the one I die with…_

Kurt made it to the stone steps that led up the courtyard where that awful event had occurred last year and he touched the stone wall, which had been obliterated and now repaired by the Hogwarts teachers, delicately. He looked out at the fountain and closed his eyes tightly as he remembered the terrible moment when Blaine had been blasted into it.

_And I'm praying you're the one I build my home with…_

_I hope I love you all my life_

_I don't wanna run away but I can't take it _

_- I don't understand_

_If I'm not made for you then why does my heart tell me that I am?_

_Is there any way that I could stay in your arms…?_

_Cos I miss you_

_Body and soul so strong that it takes my breath away_

_And I lead you_

_Into my heart and I pray for the strength to stand today_

_Because I love you_

_Whether it's wrong or right_

_And though I can't be with you tonight_

_Know my heart is by your side._

Kurt circled the edge of the fountain, one hand gliding against the stone rim as he allowed the tears to stream freely down his face, barely noticing their intrusion as he sang.

_I don't wanna run away but I can't take it _

_- I don't understand_

_If I'm not made for you then why does my heart tell me that I am?_

_Is there any way that I could stay in your arms?_

He stood still and breathed heavily, looking up at the castle as the last remnants of sun shone upon it. He had always believed that if there were anything he wanted to achieve, he would be able to manage it here. It seemed impossible to think of anything that would not be fathomable within these walls. He had thought that once, but now he was not so sure. 

* * *

><p>Hello Readers,<p>

I do hope you're not at your wit's end with me on this. I shan't give anything away too much, but I shall say this - all the exasperation will be worth it. Good stuff coming up ;)

Being cryptic is fun!

Don't throw your head through a brick wall just yet - all though, if you really feel the need please do film it and put it on Youtube, otherwise it would be a waste of comedy gold and view hits :) Just saying.


	23. Chapter 22: Talking

Chapter Twenty-Two: Talking

Finn waited at the top of the Clock Tower, on the edge of a stone step, tapping his foot as he gazed out of the window at the view below. The green grass was dotted with miniscule figures of students who swam across the landscape like a school of tadpoles, just having been released from their frogspawn cages of lessons and lectures.

There was a creak on the stairway and Finn's head snapped upwards to see a timid blonde girl climb the stairs.

He got up at once to help her heavily pregnant form make its way up the steps.

"Thanks," She said quietly, as though she resented the fact that she needed the assistance, but was glad he had offered it all the same.

He grinned widely; "I was afraid that you wouldn't come."

They had reached the flat floor of the tower now.

"I almost didn't." Quinn admitted as Finn led her over to where he had been sitting so that she could rest. He sat beside her, clasping his hands between his knees as he watched her settle.

"I feel like we haven't talked in ages," He told her.

Quinn looked a little bemused by the declaration; "That's because we haven't, Finn."

"I know… Why have you been avoiding me?" His eyes were tight with worry, afraid that he had somehow done something to upset her.

Quinn laughed a little; "Don't take it personally; I've been avoiding everyone."

"I don't get it. Surely, if anything, you need people around to talk to right now?"

Finn looked down at her and she looked up to give him a sarcastic and exasperated glance.

"Okay, so I get the part about the talks and the looks…" He said, her expression speaking volumes so that she did not need words to convey her meaning. "But what about your friends? … What about me? You know I wouldn't do that." He seemed a little hurt and offended by the circumstances.

Quinn sighed and rubbed her hands on her knees, stretching out her arms uncomfortably.

"I don't know… I guess I knew you'd ask me how I'm doing and I just don't want that. I don't want to think about it."

Finn seemed only to find himself more confused by this notion. "But, I mean, aren't you going to have to face up to it…Cos…. You must be due soon, right?"

Quinn looked away, towards the view that Finn had been perusing only moments ago.

"Another few weeks."

"Should you even be at school?" Finn asked. "I mean, I know that you want to be – and that's your choice - but is that a good idea?"

Quinn merely shrugged.

"Probably not, but you're used to the muggle world, Finn, it isn't as though they can't transport me to St Mungo's in a flash once it… once it starts."

Finn nodded and felt a loss at what else to say. Quinn seemed very vacant and unwilling to indulge in conversation or even interact with him at all. He had asked her up here and had the feeling that she had been most reluctant to attend. Yet she had done so, which was some small comfort. He was concerned for her; something had clearly changed over the summer. She seemed almost defeated.

"Did you… tell your parents?" He asked eventually.

Quinn forced another laugh and looked away from his eyes and down to the baby bump beneath her arms.

"I didn't really have to." She said bitterly.

"Oh…yeah… right. So, umm, what did they say?" Finn asked, feeling foolish because of his previous question and rubbing his hand on this chin awkwardly.

Quinn stared ahead of her, both hands twisting in her lap and Finn saw a long breath constrict in the back of her chest.

"They kicked me out."

Finn sat; shocked for a long while before – much to the Ravenclaw girl's surprise – he was suddenly on his feet.

"Wait, _what_?" He thundered, causing her to sit back a little, her breath stopping as she stared at him.

She eventually found her voice; "I kind of saw it coming, to be honest."

Finn didn't appear to accept this as a legitimate conclusion to the situation and began to pace the length of the Clock Tower, agitated and vehement.

"They kicked you out…when you're…and they just… do they have any idea…? What could they be think- Do they… even? _Fucking hell_!"

Quinn had never seen the Gryffindor like this, much less expected such a profanity to slip from his lips so ferociously. She had no idea how to react to his sudden incoherency and anger.

"Finn, sit down, please," She said in the softest voice she could manage, in an attempt to soothe.

He turned to her finally; having been so caught up in his own incredulity, and eventually managed to sit back down, only to perch on the very tip of the stone step, literally and metaphorically on edge in every way.

He looked at her with emphatic eyes and said in a much calmer voice; "Please, Quinn, we have to talk about this."

"It's getting late…" She answered immediately, wishing to dodge this conversation.

"It isn't up for debate. We need to talk. You need to talk. I'm putting my foot down."

She stared at him for a long moment and even after all her forceful demands to be the one in control, she found it impossible not to oblige his wishes, because in all honesty, she knew he was right.

She nodded and they began to talk about it.

* * *

><p>Blaine was becoming more and more acute to Karofsky's stares and it made him physically repulsed.<p>

He had noticed: The Slytherin knew that he and Kurt were not on talking terms right now, and he loved every moment of it. And each moment that he loved the separation, Blaine's hatred for him grew.

As if the fact that they weren't speaking wasn't excruciating enough to deal with, Blaine now had to endure his smug looks of triumph every time he glanced over in class or in the Great Hall or merely passing by in the corridor. It was as if the Slytherin was suddenly everywhere he looked – lying in wait like a snake slithering through the grass, getting ready to strike its prey.

The only faint thread of silver lining to this blackening cloud that enveloped Blaine was that Kurt did not respond to Karofsky any differently than he had done before the two of them had fallen out, but Karofsky seemed to take their own detachment as victory enough. His smirk, his black eyes, his wide, stupid face and his gruesome furled fists made the Gryffindor tremble with rage as he remembered all of the brutish things he had done.

And now he wanted Kurt? Surely that was wrong? Surely he couldn't think…? Kurt would never accept such a person, right?

But Karofsky's face lingered around Blaine's consciousness as if it were haunting him. Haunting him, that is, until the tiny strip of resolve he had been clinging to, snapped, and he could no longer keep the promise he had made himself not to get involved with the Slytherin this year. His promise to stay out of Karofsky's affairs unless it was absolutely necessary.

But what could be more necessary than Kurt?

It was a fundamental need for Blaine to act. To know.

To do something.

He could feel Kurt slipping through his loving fingers like grains of golden sand and he felt a piece of his heart break off every time each grain fell.

He grabbed his opportunity that evening.

* * *

><p>Blaine was sitting in the Owlery alone. Since being back at Hogwarts, the frequency of his visits had depleted significantly, but after he and Kurt had become so distant he couldn't help but find himself climbing the rickety stairs once more and spent hours just sitting beside the window and gazing out at the grounds below.<p>

And that is when he saw him.

Karofsky was walking up towards the castle a fair distance away and nobody else was around.

Blaine didn't even think about it, he did not even contemplate the decision. He was up and running down those steps before his mind even registered what he had seen.

"Hey!" Blaine yelled as soon as he reached the ground where Karofsky had now reached, having intended on passing by even though Blaine had other ideas.

His expression turned icy initially when he laid eyes on the Gryffindor, but then the corners of his lips curled up in a slight smile that made Blaine want to hit him squarely in the jaw.

But he didn't.

"What do you want?" Karofsky asked, folding his arms maliciously as he stared down at the far shorter boy before him.

Blaine did not let his height deter him as he could feel the rush of blood in his ears and instead of feeling knocked by the bully's complacency, he used it to spur on his own impassioned intentions.

"Don't think I don't know what your game is, Karofsky." He spat the words and the boy before him did not misunderstand the tone.

He still decided to play dumb, however, most likely with the intention of winding Blaine up; "Oh really, Anderson, and what would that be?"

"I think that after everything that has happened, after everything that you have done, I deserve a straight answer."

Karofsky chuckled.

"Do you now? I think differently. But please, humour me, what game is it that you think I am 'playing'?"

Blaine grinded his teeth together, clearly riled up so early in the conversation due to the build up of pent up aggression he had withheld for the Slytherin before him, and stirred up emotions prior to the confrontation.

"You want Kurt."

He said the words plainly, but saying the statement out loud made him feel no better about the situation, in fact it made him feel worse as he waited to gage the larger boy's reaction.

"Yes," He said simply.

The confirmation made Blaine want to choke on the air he breathed, but he remained disciplined and forced himself to continue on; "It won't work."

Karofsky barked a laugh; "Your lack of conviction only fills me with new confidence."

"It'll never happen," Blaine snarled, loathing every inch of him. "Why on earth would he want _you_?"

Karofsky did not seem perturbed by Blaine's attempt to ruffle him: "Reformed characters have a certain charm about them, don't you think?"

Blaine gave him a look of disgust.

"You're not a reformed character, you have a very long way to go before that."

"It's not about whether I am or not. It is whether he believes it." Karofsky told him coolly.

"He will see right through you. He can see every inch of wretched bone in your body just the same as I can. And even if he does fail to realise, which he won't; I'll warn him." Blaine threatened.

Karofsky laughed cruelly.

"From what I can see, he isn't much in the mood to take any advice from you at the moment."

Blaine's hands shifted into fists and his nostrils flared.

"He is far more likely to listen to me than to _ever _fall for you."

"But you think that you have a solid chance with him?" Karofsky retorted gleefully, eyebrow's raised in expectation of an answer that would bring him great amusement.

Blaine faltered for a moment and it was enough.

He cackled, getting his wish for comedy after all.

"You don't believe it at all, do you?"

Blaine wanted to whip out his wand and blast him with every jinx and hex in his armoury, and he had to supress such an urge with every shred of willpower he could muster.

"He'll never want you."

"But do you think he'll want you?" Karofsky asked, taking an intimidating step forwards. "That's the question."

Blaine looked up into his small eyes. "Yes… more so than you, anyway."

"Are you sure about that?" Karofsky's smile had been transformed to a grin now as he continued; "You two have been close for a while now, and what has come of it? Nothing. In fact, less than nothing, as over the last week your relationship has actually deteriorated. What does that tell you? Perhaps he has had enough of you. Perhaps you just wouldn't step up to the plate, whereas I am willing to do that. Were you aware that we talked a while back? And so our friendship is progressing while yours dwindles. Whose chances look more optimistic now?"

Blaine blanched. "When did he talk to you?"

Karofsky beamed at this.

"He didn't tell you then. Was there not a time when he'd tell you everything? Funny that… how things _change_."

"You're lying… you're making it up."

But there was no lie in Karofsky's eyes. They had talked, to what capacity he did not know, but they had talked. Why had they been _talking_? Were they friends now? How could that even be possible? Why would that happen? But if it were not so, then why would Kurt keep it from him?

His stomach flipped sickeningly and his voice shook slightly as he spoke his next words; "Stay away from him, Karofsky. He has been through enough at your hands, and I won't stand around and watch you-"

"What if he wants me around?"

"He won't."

"But what if he does?" Karofsky sneered, his seeds of doubt planting into Blaine's mind like roots of poison, seeping through him and colouring him green.

Blaine's voice receded into a tight but passionate whisper; "You would never make him happy."

Karofsky laughed darkly. "I think if we are trying to set a comparison between us, Anderson, you would find it hard to fight your side to say that you could make him happy. Do you want to know why?"

Blaine looked up into the Slytherin's face, feeling that the words he was about to hear could have the potential to shatter him completely.

"Because how could you fight your side to me here and now when you won't fight for him at all? That's your problem. You call yourself a Gryffindor and you swan around all confident with some great bravado about accepting yourself and being proud of who you are and some shit, but when it comes down to it you're just a pathetic coward. You step back and wait while the sun sets on your friendship, let alone any chance of happiness. You don't stand up and take command. You're weak, and that is why you won't get Kurt. Whereas I may have made mistakes in the past, I have got further with him in a short space of time, than you have while you have been close to him for months, without it amounting to anything. You can't fight me, Anderson, because whereas I may have messed up, I'll grow and I'll grow stronger too, and when you are reduced to nothing… I shall be the one left holding his hand."

Blaine gazed at Karofsky for a long moment, eyes wide and mouth slightly open as his brain whizzed over the words at a mile a minute. He took a step back slowly, feeling the soft ground beneath his feet.

Then he turned on his heel and sprinted up towards the castle.

"And they say Slytherins are cowards!" Karofsky called after him, a triumphant glint in his eye.

But Blaine wasn't running away, he was running forwards, faster than he had had thought was within his ability, driven by a force beyond the power of a mere human body.

* * *

><p>"Do you think it is wrong to like two people at the same time?"<p>

Mercedes looked up from her desk in their dormitory, taken aback by the sudden outburst from the small brunette who was perched on the end of her bed, hands gripping both elbows, hunched over slightly.

Rachel had been very quiet over the last few days and the belting vocalist had noticed, only she never knew how to ask Rachel about things, since she never usually had trouble with bringing things up on her own. She was never one to distract the conversation from what she thought should always be at the centre of it – herself. Finally she had done so on this occasion, but it had taken a lot longer than was typical.

Mercedes put down her Quill and swivelled her chair around to face Rachel properly.

"Why do you ask?"

"Please, just answer the question." Rachel pleaded, closing her eyes and looking away in a dramatic fashion.

Okay, maybe not being quite so open yet.

Mercedes paused to consider it. "Well, it isn't exactly something within your control, is it? You can't help it if you're attracted to someone when you're in a relationship, or at any time for that matter, but I wouldn't call it 'wrong' unless you acted on those feelings."

"That's what I thought!" Rachel exclaimed with a certain extent of relief evidently running through her.

"Rachel…" Mercedes said, causing her to be on edge again as she glanced at her diva-friend from beneath her bangs; "Is this about Finn?"

She bit her lip and grimaced. "Did I make that too obvious?"

Mercedes chuckled. "Kinda."

Rachel buried her head in her hands. "Oh, Mercedes, I've made such a mess of everything!"

At this sudden display of distress Mercedes instantly got up to walk over to where her friend was sitting, settling down beside her and putting a comforting hand on her back, patting it lightly to try and soothe her.

"I'm guessing that Jesse has a problem with it?"

Rachel nodded.

"He won't be with me until I decide who I want..."

Mercedes raised her eyebrows hopefully; "You're deliberating?"

"No, of course not," Rachel said immediately, dashing Mercedes' wishful thinking. "I love Jesse. I _chose_ Jesse."

"But he doesn't consider that enough?" Mercedes guessed as she brought her hands back down to her lap and mulled over the situation.

Rachel shook her head. "He wants me to choose one of them exclusively. With no feelings for the other."

Mercedes seemed to hesitate for a long while before Rachel eventually had to look up at her with desperate eyes before she continued to speak.

"I can kind of see where he's coming from. As much as I hate to admit it… I am not saying you're in the wrong in any way, and I think his request for you to stop liking Finn entirely is a little unreasonable… but I guess it must be difficult being in a relationship with someone if you know they have feelings for somebody else… especially when that other person professed their love to you as blatantly as Finn did."

Rachel frowned. "You're not acting too surprised by my confession."

"Of you liking Finn still?" Mercedes shot her an exasperated look. "Rachel, _please_."

"Is it that obvious?" Rachel said in a high-pitched, shrill tone.

"Yes."

Rachel groaned and held her head in her hands once more. She had hoped that her infatuation had subsided a great deal from dating Jesse, to be replaced by her feelings for him, but it only seemed to have expanded her capacity to have feelings towards them both. And she had not thought it was quite so easily recognisable. Did Finn see it too? She prayed that he did not.

"Hey, it's not all bad," Mercedes said in a motherly tone; "Let Jesse cool off for a few days, I'm sure he will come running back in no time."

"What if he doesn't?" Rachel asked sorrowfully.

Mercedes looked Rachel in the eye defiantly. "Then who the hell needs him, Rachel? If he's not willing to accept you choosing him, then he isn't worth the trouble. His demands are slightly ludicrous. You can't help who you fall for."

Rachel didn't say anything, but returned her gaze to her knees.

"Rachel… are you sure Jesse is the right decision for you?"

The tiny girl looked at her wide-eyed. "Of course!"

She watched Mercedes' face fall and sighed.

"Please, lets not start this again."

"But you _do_ like Finn… " Mercedes stated sadly.

"That doesn't change the fact that Jesse is my boyfriend and I want to be with him. He is everything I could ask for and I am not willing to let him go. He's never given me any reason to doubt him."

Mercedes got up and walked over to the window.

"He makes you happy?" She asked slowly.

"Yes," The spotlight-loving girl replied.

"More than Finn?"

Rachel tried not to hesitate: "Yes."

Mercedes turned around and looked at her, an unsettled expression on her face as she battled over whether to listen to her friend or stick up for another.

She sighed, knowing she would kick herself for this later:

"If he is truly what you want, then maybe you should find a way to tell him that."

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Blaine stood outside the door of his own dormitory, desperately trying to steady his breathing after having run all the way from the darkening grounds of Hogwarts. His heart thudded in his chest and anxious jolts of electricity pulsed through his body as he contemplated the results of entering the room; the consequences of facing the boy beyond this wooden barricade; the conclusion of whatever conversation was about to ensue.<p>

Blaine knew he was being stupid as he struggled to imagine the situation worsening from this currently insufferable silent treatment. The inability to talk to Kurt these past few days had been unbearable, to the extent that he would have preferred to be physically arguing with him just so that he could be near him and hear his voice and stare into those eyes which were like starlight. Even if Kurt were yelling at him he would at least be showing some kind of passionate emotion towards him, and even though Blaine knew that was ridiculous, he couldn't help but want it.

Of course, he would prefer that they would both be getting along by miles; his hand had felt numb from the absence of his touch all week. It was a starvation of contact that he seemed to crave in any form, a yearning that scared him slightly, but was mostly just empowering,

But what if by charging in there now he could ruin their friendship all together? What if it meant that they would never be able to have any such moments again? That they disappeared from each other's lives and became a far away memory? It wasn't even worth thinking about…

And no, he mustn't think about it.

He had to fight.

He needed to take heed of his own advice. Kurt had managed to so flawlessly that it had stuck him in a daze and state of awe for days, stunned by his strength and brilliance. If he wanted to stand any chance, he had to bring himself up to his level. Kurt deserved better than how he had been acting. Kurt deserved so much more than this. Some things were worth risking it all for. Some things you just had to refuse to lose.

Courage.

Blaine pushed open the door.

Kurt stood before him, next to the window; he stood initially with his back towards Blaine, facing the window as he set down his newly taken-out library books. He then started to turn around to look at the new addition to the dormitory, and if Blaine had cared to notice, he would have realised that Finn was absent from the room for an unexplained reason.

Yet the thought didn't cross his mind as he quickly averted his gaze, not being quite brave enough to look upon the face of the younger Gryffindor just yet.

He would still take his breath away, he was sure of that, and he needed his voice.

"I don't want us to fight anymore," Blaine blurted out immediately, not allowing himself a second to back track or re-evaluate the situation.

Kurt froze for a moment and then slowly moved his body around to face him fully.

Blaine struggled his gaze away from those blazing blue irises, which he knew had the potential to swallow him whole.

"Okay."

Hearing that gentle whisper made Blaine feel as though he had been knocked backwards by the same spell that Karofsky had used to send him flying into the fountain.

"Okay?" He asked, not daring to believe the simple answer in fear that it would cause further damage to his heart if he had misunderstood somehow.

He heard a small choke; "I was just going to come and find you…"

Blaine looked up at the sound of a sob and now he wished he had seen Kurt's face before he had spoken.

The brilliant blue eyes were red and tears streaked down his cheeks, his eyebrows pulled together painfully and his mouth fighting to achieve the smile his crying wrestled to prevent.

Blaine was across the room in a heartbeat, taking only two leaps to reach the distraught boy before him.

He wanted to wrap his arms around Kurt, but the countertenor held out a hand before he could make contact.

"No, hold on, I just… need a moment."

Blaine stood, suspended in agony as he watched Kurt turn his head away, fiercely scrubbing the tears away in a sudden haste. He knew that Kurt did not like to be smothered when he was this upset, he did not like to be fussed over, he liked to remain strong and pull himself together.

Even so, he thought it not overstepping by too huge a degree by placing his hand on Kurt's forearm and lightly taking it down away from his face.

"Hey, why are you so upset?" He asked softly, a lump rising in his own throat.

Kurt looked at him properly now, those eyes still glittering despite the dim light and standing only inches from him.

He was right; his breath had left his lungs.

"I'm just…" Kurt stammered and he bit his teeth together and shook his head angrily at himself. "Oh God Blaine, I'm so sor-"

"You don't need to say it, I know." Blaine insisted quickly, finding his voice because his words needed to be said.

Kurt frowned. "No really I am, Blaine, I-"

"Kurt," Blaine took his other arm now, sliding both hands into his own and feeling the heat of his palms radiate through him. "_I know_."

Kurt looked a little frustrated; "I was just about to come find you… I wanted to tell you how wrong I was and how I shouldn't have been so… Why won't you just let me say so-"

"Nope," Blaine said cutting him off again at the point of apology and smiling a little now as Kurt looked at him incredulously; "I never needed you to say that Kurt - I don't need you to say it because I can read it in your eyes and that says it all. I don't want you to be upset and I don't want to dwell on what happened. I want to focus on now. You said okay; you said you don't want to keep fighting… yes?"

He needed to confirm that he wasn't crazy to have heard that.

Kurt nodded, sniffing back the last few tears that had been about to fall from his eyes.

"Yes," He breathed magically.

"Really?"

Kurt choked on a short laugh, eyes shining with new tears, which were of a different sort to the miserable ones that had been falling from them previously; "Sorry, did you want me to protest?"

"I thought that you might have," Blaine confessed, letting their hands fall apart again, and drop to their sides.

Kurt gazed down at the floor for a moment, bringing his eyes up slowly until they finally reached the level of Blaine's who felt as though he was swimming within them.

"I hated not being able to talk to you."

Blaine couldn't help himself; he broke into one of the most joyous grins he had ever held upon his face so that it made his jaw ache, and he didn't care one bit.

Kurt sat down on the end of his bed, gesturing that he do the same and Blaine followed gladly.

"So," Said Kurt, a little breathlessly, his eyes shining brighter than Blaine had thought possible. "Tell me about your day?"

* * *

><p>Hello Readers!<p>

Greeting, I am in the most buzzing of moods this evening, and so I am writing this author's notes that the majority of you shall ignore. Can you feel it coming in the air tonight? Well, not tonight, but soon. Can you feel it? Do you know what it is? I do :D

Oh, sorry, to those of you who have blanked these up till now, I am not crazy (much) I am just super happy as I have smoothed out a lot of niggling issues today and it has given me a new high. Plus I wrote something rather beautiful today, which you guys will not get to see for a while as I am further ahead on writing this by several chapters. However, let's just say you may get your own dose of beauty on here very...very...soon.

You want to know what? Well, I can't say nothing if you don't say please...

You said please?

NOTHING.

Told you that I wouldn't say nothing if you didn't say please!

Why did they take Peeves out of the films, why? Do you remember what he did to Umbridge? That Poltergeist is a legend!

*Sigh*

Who say Joey and Rupert's meeting on Darren's tweet? AWWWWW! Dreams coming true for our Starkids guys. Watch out Daniel!

Okay, sorry, leaving you now. Hope you liked it!

OH, and thanks for reviews, keep them coming. I love hearing from you guys, an I promise to be far calmer in my responses. However, if you want me to react like a crazy person, I can do that too :)


	24. Chapter 23: Clouds

Chapter Twenty- Three: Clouds

(Songs: Goot – I Love Your Existence. Again, I recommend that you listen to this song, but if you do make sure it is the ACOUSTIC VERSION as that's most appropriate and I generally regard it as a better rendition. Please do, it's beautiful )

* * *

><p>Talking to Blaine again was like taking in fresh air for the first time after years of being locked indoors. He gazed into his face and memorised every line around his mouth and eyes when he smiled, every curve of his jaw, each change of expression – without staring too intently, of course, so as not to provoke suspicion on his part. He didn't want to seem obsessed, or anything…<p>

They started off by catching up on each other's lives over the past week of silence – not that there had been too much to report as they had spent so much time together in classes, meal times and in the common room, but had just been so far apart mentally.

It was strange how two people could be so close in proximity and yet feel like a chasm separated them. They discussed such details all the same, reminiscing from their different perspectives as if to solidify them now as joint memories, of precious moments that they could now share in, even when it had technically been a fractured experience at the time. Talking about them made it possible to weave together the fragmented memories, which had seemed so muddied when they had occurred, because of the other's absence, and yet now could be transformed into treasures.

Soon they merely settled into their usual flourished conversations ranging from their desired spirit animals to the latest Patti LuPone novel. They spent a good half hour debating their favourite characters in Hairspray and somehow the conversation then turned to Blaine trying to map out the rules to American Football to Kurt using his set of Wizard's Chess. He failed miserably, of course, half because of Kurt's ineptitudes when it came to understanding any sport (even though, being muggleborn, he should know the rules better than Blaine, who came from a predominantly wizarding family) and half because Blaine describing the game proved to be too distracting to focus on anything but his wide eyes, grin and magnanimous hand gestures.

He gave up and finished by saying that Quidditch was miles better anyway.

It got to a point where the sun had thoroughly set and Blaine was laid on his back, feet in the air and propped up against one of the ridges on the top of his four-poster bed, hands tucked underneath his head and elbows out to the side in a relaxed position. For some reason Kurt was now happily sat on the floor, head propped up on his hands where his chin rested against his knuckles and rolled slightly to the side so that he could gain a better view of Blaine's profile; he was currently appreciating the way the candlelight of the room gleamed an orange hue onto his skin.

"I think we missed dinner," Blaine chuckled as he turned his head slightly to watch Kurt's lips turn up into a small smile, making the temperature of the room rise as he looked.

"I believe we have; I don't even feel hungry." Kurt said softly.

"Yeah, me neither," Blaine claimed, but then a rumbling of his stomach gave the game away. He took one of his hands from behind his head and rubbed it against his stomach. "Okay, maybe I am a little."

Kurt laughed and then yawned slightly, taking his arms out to the sides as he shut his eyes and stretched out his hands to either side of him. "What time is it?"

While his eyes were closed, Blaine stole the opportunity to tilt back his head and glance at Kurt.

He distracted himself by pulling out his wand and flicking it towards the bedside table so that his clock swivelled round to face them.

10:27

"Jesus, how long have we been talking?" Kurt gasped, sitting bolt upright now and then proceeding to scramble to his feet.

"Err… about four hours." Blaine answered, relishing the long conversation like drinking a glass of water after having walked in a desert for two days.

Kurt frowned however, twirling his wand through his fingers effortlessly as though it were a baton and walking over to the window.

"Where's Finn? Shouldn't he be back by now? Curfew is just over half an hour away..."

He looked out at the window, as though expecting to see the figure of his brother conveniently running into view, even though he would never have seen him anyway in the pitch-black grounds.

Blaine sat up now, gazing around the room as though he expected Finn to jump out of the wardrobe and yell surprise after having been there the whole time. "Maybe he had to go and see a teacher? Has he gotten a detention recently?"

Kurt shook his head, "Not that I know of…"

He looked round at the other occupant within the room and the sight of his face seemed to soothe his qualms to a certain degree.

Blaine walked forwards; "Look, I'm sure he's fine. He's probably studying in the library or hanging out with people from Quidditch or something. If he's not back by 11 then we'll go and find McGonagall, okay?"

Blaine took Kurt's hand and squeezed it.

"He'll be mad it I get him into trouble…" Kurt continued, even though the spark of electricity that had shot through him at the touch had been wonderful, he couldn't help but worry still; "Then he really _will _have a detention…"

"Well, better that than realise something bad has happened – not that it will have!" Blaine quickly added as Kurt's stomach felt as though it had been pelted with ice cubes at the thought. "He can take care of himself. Don't fret so much."

He whispered the last part and Kurt stared into those golden-brown eyes that had somehow adopted a green tint to them, and he couldn't help but let his words of comfort wash over him like the warm Mediterranean Sea.

Without any warning, he stepped forward and embraced the older boy, who instinctively wrapped his arms around Kurt's waist and held him close, breathing in the sweet smell of his hair as it brushed his face.

He laughed a little as Kurt pulled back again; "What was that for?"

Not that he was complaining.

Kurt merely shrugged and smiled at him, ducking his head in an adorable fashion; "Just haven't hugged you in a while, that's all."

The words sent a warm flutter through the base of Blaine's stomach and he fought hard to supress a grin. "A good point."

They stood for a moment before Kurt suggested that they get ready for bed before Finn arrived back, and so each boy went over to where their trunks were situated and unfolded their pyjamas.

Once they had changed, Blaine said in a low voice:

"Kurt…?"

His voice sounded peculiar somehow, as though a great weight were posed on the edge of his mind as he spoke his name. Kurt looked up, a lurch from his stomach to his fingertips occurring as he was fearful that what he had to say would be something grave.

Blaine did not look directly at him; "Tomorrow is Saturday, yes?"

Kurt raised one eyebrow - such angst just to ask the day of the week? He chuckled lightly at the mismatched tone and subject; "Yes Blaine, just as today is Friday, and Sunday comes afterwards."

Blaine laughed a little, but he still seemed oddly nervous as he inhaled deeply and fixed Kurt with his eyes more purposefully now; "Meet me in Hogsmeade? About midday?"

Kurt looked up at him curiously. There seemed to be a great significance behind the request that he could not figure out, along with a certain vulnerability that tinted Blaine's eyes like a bird concerned that he would be deprived of his chance to fly to freedom.

But naturally, Kurt could very rarely reject an invitation from the boy before him; "All right, yeah; of course."

Blaine looked down, a grin finally breaking across his face even though he looked abashed by it.

"Good," He finally stated. He looked up and smiled at him serenely; "Goodnight, Kurt."

"Goodnight, Blaine," He whispered in return.

* * *

><p>Finn did come back two minutes before eleven, creeping in very carefully so as not to awaken either sleeping boy, even though Kurt was wide-awake when he had returned.<p>

He propped his head up and mustered the most disapproving glare his weary state could manage, Finn returning a guilty grin of his own, before Kurt merely sighed, rolled his eyes and then his entire body so that he could finally settle into his dreams.

* * *

><p>The next day when Kurt awoke he felt very…aware.<p>

It was the only way to describe the feeling; it was as though every sensation he felt was heightened somehow. He awoke to the soft breeze gliding in from his window that he had never previously acknowledged, and he instantly picked up on the warm temperature of the day before he even got up.

He sat upright and felt the dregs of sleep peel away from his eyes as he blinked and rubbed them softly.

He was weirdly alert to the silky fabric of his pyjamas as they clung to him from the night before and he looked around the dormitory, taking in each colour as though it hurled towards him in its brightness and each edge of furniture stood out in high definition. He sensed it was empty before his eyes could register the fact and merely searched to confirm it.

He went to bathe and get dressed, each lap of water, brush of towel, smell of soap seemed to leap out at him and try to catch him off-guard by their texture and potency.

He allowed himself to perform each action slowly, enjoying it as every pore of his body responded to each action in a pleasing way and he basked in this euphoria of senses.

Down at breakfast, every crunch of cereal seemed to arouse his taste buds as it sprinkled across his tongue like gold dust and each sip of Pumpkin Juice slid down his throat like precious elixir, refreshing him down to his toes.

Finn was there, all though he demanded no explanation for his lateness the night before; for some reason he felt it unimportant at that moment, ad not his business. Plus he was distracted — his odd feelings did not seem supernatural; merely that he himself had taken a wider scope of the world and could now finally appreciate the finer details.

Blaine was absent, just as he had been from the dormitory that morning, but something within Kurt told him not to fret about this, just as Blaine had told him not to do so over Finn the night before.

He felt a flood of adrenaline flood through him at the thought of Blaine and something within him seemed to signal that something of significance was on the horizon.

* * *

><p>Kurt made his way down to Hogsmeade, poised in anticipation as he inhaled the honeyed scent of his surroundings. The grounds seemed to gleam; the bright fresh-green grass contrasting beautifully with the rich caramel coloured gravel paths that guided him onto the jet-black gates, which glimmered in the cool sunlight.<p>

It was by no means a hot day, but one of those gorgeous September days where the sun lightly toasted the earth, causing a more neutral and pleasant temperature, which was only a gradient more than mild, so that it heated the skin without being insufferable. The soft breeze fanned through his hair without displacing it and he had to concentrate hard on his controlled movements so that he did not give in to his sudden urge to begin skipping along the road instead.

When Kurt reached Hogsmeade the awareness of his senses subsided slightly as they were taken over by that of the whirring's in his mind. Predominantly paranoia:

Was he wearing the right jacket for the occasion? Should he have worn one at all? What were Blaine's plans anyway? What had he been doing earlier today that prevented his attendance at breakfast? Kurt didn't even know if their meaning for meeting was positive or negative, he only felt so uplifted because that was the general effect that Blaine had on him on a day-to-day basis whenever he was near him. Try as he might, he doubted that feeling would ever relinquish itself from him, even when he was riddled with fear or dread, it forever resided deep within his core.

…Maybe he should have worn a hat.

After much scouting of the small brick Hogsmeade houses and shops, Kurt finally laid eyes on the figure he had been longing to see.

Blaine stood, leaning against the side wall of The Hog's Head, one thumb tucked into the pocket of his black jeans, a dark red knitted jumper on top that fitted snugly to the contours of his chest and torso, causing the rim of Kurt's collar to feel very hot all of a sudden. His dark curls were only slightly more casually arranged than the severely gelled down hairstyle he adorned during school hours. It was being lightly ruffled by the wind.

He held no other object but his wand that stuck out of the back pocket of his trousers; there was nothing else that indicated to Kurt his intentions.

The sentiment of such was at least confirmed, however, as Blaine broke into a dazzling smile the moment their eyes met, pushing himself away from the wall and walking impatiently towards the younger Gryffindor.

"Afternoon," He said, voice tipped with relish for his present circumstances.

"Hi," Was the best that Kurt could provide as a response as he continued to glance about in search of clues.

Blaine instantly realised what he was doing and chuckled. "You can't see it… Well, you can, but you'd never guess so you'd be better off just giving up trying."

Kurt eyed him sceptically; he wondered whether Blaine's fun little surprises would ever end… Probably not.

"Are you going to tell me why we're here then?"

"Kurt, have you ever experienced side-along apparition?" Blaine answered instead of giving a direct reply to Kurt's own question, a small smirk lurking on his lips.

"No…" Kurt said a little nervous as Blaine's eyes shone jubilantly. "…We're only due to start lessons ourselves next term."

Blaine grinned; "I had to take you out here, of course, as you cannot apparate or disapparate within Hogwart's grounds, but there are no such restrictions here."

Kurt nodded slowly, still unsure as to what on earth the older boy had up his sleeve.

"So…what do I have to do?"

"First thing's first," Blaine said, pulling his wand out of his pocket and directing it towards Kurt's nose and mouth. Normally, such an action would alarm the countertenor, but he knew that Blaine would never do him any harm and he also had complete faith in his magical capabilities.

"_Abeosaer_," Blaine whispered and a silvery veil seemed to swim from his wand and absorb into Kurt's nostrils and mouth, sucked back into his oesophagus and lungs and disappeared. It felt just as though someone had sprayed cool water through his insides, but without any irritation, just a light tingling.

"What was that for?" Kurt asked inquisitively, touching his fingertips to his lips, all though he could feel nothing there that was remotely abnormal.

The side of Blaine's own mouth twitched into a smile as he repeated the spell, this time performing it on himself, before answering Kurt's question; "Breathing."

He winked and then quickly placed his hand in Kurt's and leaving the younger Gryffindor no time to react to the contact, since the pair was suddenly uprooted from where they stood.

* * *

><p>Kurt felt a strange tugging around his navel as all was suddenly obscured from view and they flew through some unknown void.<p>

Soon, however, his feet had landed - though the surface beneath them was not hard when his boots made contact with it, but more… soft and…fluffy?

He overbalanced immediately, head spinning with dizziness and only being able to take in a suddenly engulfing white light with his vision impaired.

Blaine remained holding his hand so that he was there to steady Kurt and curled an arm around his waist now, while he tried to get over the effects of the apparition, needing to lean against the vocalist for some support that was most gladly given.

"It takes some getting used to," Blaine said quietly, "You did very well."

After having been forced to close his eyes for a moment while his body and mind settled and caught up with each other, Kurt managed to straighten up and Blaine released him as he did so, taking a step back.

Kurt was confused as to why this was, and instantly wanted to find the comfort of his arms once more.

But then he opened his eyes.

Once his retinas adjusted to the bright white-gold light, he could have sworn that he was in the North Pole, as miles of snowy-white plains were laid out in front of him.

Yet the air was not cold, it was deliciously humid; the sort of temperature that would usually cause one to feel stuffy from the thick air and sweat-provoking warmth, but Kurt felt neither of these. His skin was dry and his breathing easy. At closer examination he knew that the substance was not snow at all, as the density was not right, it was like the consistency of cotton wool, but not as solid as that or snow.

He watched as the strange material swirled around his feet in small wisps that furled up from the large body of mass surrounding them. He felt as though he floated, felt a fantastic tickling sensation against his skin as it glided across him, creeping like a delicate vine up his body and shrouding him in silver mist, which sparkled like millions of miniscule diamonds.

The light bounced across its surface, making patterns that Kurt could not describe in a thousand words — or more — as they danced continuously, ever-changing as though it were a living organism.

Kurt looked skywards, yet no wash of blue met his eyes, only further levels of this strange substance, reaching higher and completely encasing the pair in this gloriously white candy-floss.

It was the most exquisite place he had ever seen and he must have spent a very long time taking in everything before him, unable to move, speak or comprehend anything other than the setting, which wafted around him like fairy dust.

Finally, Kurt whirled around to where Blaine remained. His figure added another stunning quality to the area as he stood with his arms folded and head tilted to one side, the most enraptured expression posed on his features along with a look of peace as he watched Kurt absorbing the sights around him.

"Blaine…" Kurt breathed, voice extraordinarily high from his bedazzlement, twirling around on the spot as the white wisps followed him and stroked along his outstretched fingertips. He laughed; "Where_ are_ we?"

"We, Kurt, are in the clouds." Blaine said melodically.

Kurt stood stock still for a moment, processing such an unimaginable piece of information as he touched a hand to his throat, thumb grazing his collarbone where his flesh was exposed and he remembered the spell cast on him before they had left.

"Atmosphere Adjustment Charm," Blaine explained, mesmerised by the positioning of Kurt's hand and licking his lip slightly to regain the moisture. "Otherwise we wouldn't last very long up here. The Charm makes us able to breathe up here, and alters the atmosphere, making it feel humid when in fact it should be as freezing as if we were trekking along the Arctic Circle. Instead, it is like taking a stroll on a summer's day. Neat, huh?"

Kurt blinked a few times, striving to wrap his head around the concept as he took a few steps forward, his back to the Chaser.

"I'm walking on clouds?" He asked, astounded at the thought.

Blaine brought his knuckles to his teeth to bite gently as he laughed exuberantly at the enchanted expression on Kurt's profile.

Kurt was far too carried away to notice as he did a light pirouette.

"I'm dancing on clouds!" He exclaimed joyfully.

Blaine watched him in awe as the flamboyant boy continued to prance about, the wisps of cloud pursuing him with each movement and soothing each area of his skin, making Kurt's already beautiful porcelain skin gleam.

Despite his Charm, Blaine suddenly began to find breathing a little difficult as he watched.

Kurt laughed happily, forgetting the inhibitions that constrained him earlier as he skipped over towards Blaine, landing directly in front of him with graceful precision.

"How on earth did you think of this?" He asked in wonder.

Blaine outstretched a hand in front of him so that the wisps curled around his own fingers. "I come up here from time to time actually. Nathan told me about it. Well, he theorised about how cool it would be to go up to the clouds. I have no idea where he got the idea from, but he never got around to doing it himself. I think he tried a few times. Then, ever since his disappearance, it became a sort of pet project of mine to find a way up here."

Kurt loved how much easier it was for Blaine to talk about his brother now. Whereas before, each mention had seemed to cause him pain, he now spoke of the idea with reverence and a smile on his face.

"Wait, so do you think any other wizard has done this before?" Kurt asked, gazing at the vocalist in veneration.

Blaine shrugged. "Maybe, I don't know. I had to figure out the Charm on my own. It took me ages, and I had to read up on a lot of complex theory to master it. My apparition license made it a great deal easier – I used to have to fly up higher and higher on my broom to practice and gage the effects from experimenting with the magic."

"Whoa. That must have taken ages… but why were you unable to come to breakfast this morning?" Kurt enquired.

Blaine poked his tongue between his teeth and bit it slightly as his smile widened a little further and a slight red tint coloured his cheeks. "I had to make sure that I found the perfect spot."

Kurt breathed in the answer appreciatively and cast his eyes back out across the white plains once more; "It's beautiful."

"Yes… Yes, it is." Blaine replied softly, not looking at the clouds.

* * *

><p>"I just…. I cannot get over it," Kurt said for the thousandth time. The two boys sat on individual smaller clouds that hovered above the main plain at symmetrical heights from the other so that they were on the same level, their edges touching gingerly.<p>

"I know," Blaine said, legs crossed, elbows propped against his ankles and chin on his knuckles as he leant as far in towards Kurt as was possible.

Kurt spread his hands to the edge of his cloud and looked over the edge at the white mass beneath.

"How is it even doing this? They're just clouds… Should we not fall right through them?"

It was as though the substance moulded itself for each whim and need of the two boys, patterns changing and shapes manoeuvring around them as they walked, moved, stood or sat.

Blaine grinned at the question.

"Oh, these weren't constructed by the clouds, Kurt," he said, gesturing to their new pedestals.

Kurt gave him a curious look, pouting slightly in confusion as he did so, making that part of his face very difficult for him not to stare at.

"They're… ah… manipulated by the Cloud Nymphs." Blaine said matter-of-factly.

Kurt's eyes bulged and Blaine's breath caught as oceanic blue stood out against the white-wash backdrop, proposing the danger of swallowing him whole within their depths.

"There are such things as Cloud Nymphs?" He asked.

"Well, okay, I don't know for sure if that's what they're called officially, or even if they're registered magical creatures. I did some research and one witch, Drusilla Lovegood, claimed to have seen them before, then again everyone thought she was completely batty and she lived years ago." Blaine shrugged, still trying to maintain his composure, which seemed to have become his constant occupation in recent months. "I don't know, but there seems to be a general force here. She claimed they're too tiny to see, microscopic, but that there are a tonne of them surrounding every cloud formation."

Kurt held out his hands and the wisps of silver danced along his palms and around his wrists, circling them like bracelets, and then he returned his eyes to Blaine who simply smiled.

"Wow… I love magic."

"It certainly makes life more entertaining, doesn't it?" Blaine said cheerfully.

"How come they're so welcoming… your Cloud Nymphs?" Kurt queried; "Why are they helping us to stay up? I thought that most magical creatures rejected wizards that tried to enter their realms and forced them out so as to prevent them from disturbing their environments?"

Blaine grinned and wiggled his fingers as the silver mist danced between the gaps.

"I know. It's kind of bizarre. I first noticed it when I was flying up here on my broomstick, like I told you. It was one of the first times that I perfected the Charm and I suddenly realised that I wasn't controlling my broom anymore. That something else was lifting me. By that time I had found Drusilla Lovegood's theories, so I assumed it was them, but just the same as you; I had expected more hostility than this…"

"So why do they help us?" Kurt asked. "And why do they look like this?"

"Well, like Drusilla said — they're microscopic. I guess that thousands grouped together just gives them this form and together they're strong enough to keep the two of us afloat. See how they shimmer? I suppose that's their movement or something. Wings maybe? Drusilla had sketches in her book - I'll show you later."

He smiled excitedly up at Kurt for a brief second at the promise, before he continued:

"As for the niceties… Well, that I have no concrete evidence for, but I have my own ideas on the matter."

Kurt tilted his head to one side, patiently inviting him to explain.

"I think we fascinate them." Blaine shrugged. "If you think about a lot of the creatures who reject wizarding kind, they live in areas where we tend to intrude and be destructive, like the Centaurs in the forests, Giants in the mountains, or Merpeople in the lake. Muggles and wizards intrude upon those places on a regular basis… but in the clouds – hardly anyone (or so I assume) has travelled up here, so we're probably the first human beings they've seen. Hell, we're probably the only of the creature they have had in such close proximity, so I guess we intrigue them. We're just some weird spectacle to them."

Kurt gazed warmly at Blaine's expression and then lay back into the silvery mist that swirled around them.

Yet, it seemed that Blaine was not quite finished, as his words trailed off into his own stream of thought.

"I kind of hope it is more than that though… they could think of us as predators or some sort of threat, but they don't. They accept us regardless, don't ask questions, or judge. They just want to make sure that we don't plummet down to the earth; they want to keep us around. We interest them and they don't even demand anything from us in order to earn that from them. They just accept us…"

For some reason, Kurt felt as though Blaine was no longer thinking about Cloud Nymphs as he frowned slightly at his hands.

Then Blaine shook his head and lifted it to smile warmly at the younger Gryffindor.

* * *

><p>"Kurt, I'm hoping that you have realised by now that there is a reason for me bringing you here today."<p>

Blaine spoke, sitting up suddenly. The two boys had been resting silently for a little while since their last conversation, but it seemed as though the vocalist now had other ideas in his head.

Kurt sat up too and was suddenly very tuned in to Blaine's words, to his voice, to his facial expressions — to the fingers coiling around each other in his lap.

"I wanted to tell you something… but, well, I'm not always so great at expressing myself… as you may have gathered at times but, err, there is always my fall-back option where I find it harder to confuse my point… I just want you to listen, and hopefully my meaning will be clear."

Kurt did not need to ask for any more information, like so many other times, he clocked on instantly to what Blaine was suggesting and he remained motionless, letting this be an indication to the older Gryffindor that he may continue.

Blaine looked down at his cloud and broke into a crooked smile; "At least this time you can't possibly be embarrassed by onlookers."

"Or deranged Slytherins," Kurt pointed out, hardly able to hear himself over the thundering pounds of his pulse.

"Or those," Blaine agreed, but then he ceased to joke, closing his eyes and inhaling deeply through his nose, trying to steady himself.

Kurt held his breath too, unable to pass air through his lungs at that moment as he watched, spellbound once more by the boy who sat inches apart from him.

_Perfection is defined, when your heart beats next to mine…_

_And time stands still for us._

_My hand in your hand, and yours on my chest…_

_Moments with you are my life's best._

Blaine's eyes fluttered open like a butterfly's wing as he gained confidence, connecting with the song on a level that Kurt had never witnessed within him before. He could almost feel a handprint over his heart as he spoke that line and had to glance down to check none was there.

_We crossed paths for a reason,_

_The planets align in a particular season._

_It's clear to me that we'll eventually be_

…_Inseparable._

Blaine whispered the last word so sweetly that the sound washed through Kurt's ears and swept down to his toes like a ripple.

_I love your existence_

_And I can't get enough_

_I love your existence_

_I can't get enough…_

_Your song is sung in your beautiful voice…_

_My senses rush because they have no other choice._

_I breathe you in and I see through your eyes…_

_You are an angel with a beautiful disguise._

Kurt remembered his own rush of senses that morning, knowing the exact feeling that Blaine was describing. Understanding it. Walking across the blank pages of a book until he settled on one where Blaine already stood waiting.

_We crossed paths for a reason,_

_The planets align in the particular season._

_It seems to me that we'll eventually be_

…_Inseparable._

Kurt found his own eyes closing now as he simply allowed that celestial voice to flow through him, a true testament when the visual source possessed such a spectacular feast for one's eyes. Blaine did not need amplification charms or instruments to make that voice every bit as miraculous as it was.

_I love your existence_

_I can't get enough_

_I love your existence_

_I can't get enough_

_So pucker up and embrace the quickness_

_Get me high and release my sadness_

_I love your existence_

_I can't get enough_

_I love your existence_

_I can't get enough_

_So pucker up and embrace the quickness_

_Get me high and release my sadness_

_I love your existence_

_I can't get enough_

_I love your existence_

… _I can't get enough…_

Kurt's eyes remained closed as he sat forward, legs crossed and one hand cupping underneath his chin, his mouth turned up in a serene smile as he absorbed the song's lyrics, the voice, the memories it had inspired out of his deep subconscious.

Yet, at that moment, a new reality interrupted such musings and fantasies, as another hand had now found the side of his face, and was touching it delicately, fingertips brushing the edge of his hair. Before he knew what was happening, another set of lips pressed against Kurt's own.

Sweet, warm lips, filled with the upmost tenderness as they met his and although he was frozen for a moment by the utter shock of such a development, it was only for a fraction of a second.

In the next instant Kurt's hand found Blaine's cheek as he returned the kiss with equal enthusiasm and eagerness. He could feel the small amount of tension that had remained in the older boy's jaw — since he had feared his sentiment might not have been reciprocated — vanish. It released to be replaced by a smile against their joined lips, his fingers now weaving into Kurt's hair amorously.

They melted into one another, like the sun and the moon meeting in an eclipse, or two stars colliding and creating an immeasurable detonation. Yet, in this instance it was the emotion of the long-awaited and bottled-up adoration each boy felt for the other, and of which had finally concluded.

The silvery mist seemed to swirl up around them, encasing them in its soft, white-diamond dome, like a silk blanket, allowing the privacy and intimacy of the kiss to be held for them, and them alone.

* * *

><p>Back on earth, a muggle woman looked up and could have sworn that she saw two brightly coloured birds flutter next to each other, higher up in the sky than she would have though possible, but after having blinked once, they disappeared into mist, and she was sure that she had only imagined it.<p> 


	25. Chapter 24: Together

Chapter Twenty-Four: Together

(Songs: Just A Kiss – Lady Antebellum)

* * *

><p>Kurt felt the last remnants of sleep ebb away from his body, as his mind swam upwards to the surface of his consciousness, as if it had lain at the bottom of a deep oasis.<p>

He broke the water, but kept his eyes closed, smiling slightly as he did so and waiting as each fraction of memory from the day before rose up from his well of slumber, along with his mind, slowly slotting each fragment into place…

Blaine crossed over to Kurt's bed that morning, heart feeling as though it had expanded in his sleep and grown wings which now began to beat and flutter against his ribcage as he set eyes on that familiar face. It was lit up so splendidly by the morning sun and a small smile seemed to play on his lips, for reasons unknown to the vocalist…

The light brush of Blaine's kiss was a welcome surprise and as he tried to pull away, thinking Kurt remained asleep and so not meaning to disturb his dozing, the younger Gryffindor reached out his hand and caught hold of his shirt collar. He kept his eyes closed and kept their mouths pressed against one another and Blaine's chuckle sent vibrations through this point of contact.

Blaine separated his lips from Kurt's by a fraction of a millimetre to say; "I suppose that confirms that I didn't just make yesterday up in my head."

Kurt, still coming to the brim of consciousness, muttered; "Mmm… I could definitely get used to that kind of wake-up call."

Blaine beamed at this and returned for another quick, soft kiss before straightening up again, earning a moan of protest from the sleep-induced boy.

Kurt's eyes finally opened to see the picture before him.

Blaine stood by his bedside. Blaine. His Blaine? Oh, he liked the sound of that. Not that he could at all come to terms with the concept.

After all this time the boy before him had not only returned his unmitigated feelings, but he had been the one to confess them. He had been the one to kiss him. Because he wanted to do so. Because he wanted _him_.

Kurt could not get enough of this thought anymore than he could comprehend it.

Then his eyes darted over to where Finn's empty bed lay, fearful that he might have still been there.

Blaine shrugged, following his gaze; "He must have gone down to breakfast early," at this Kurt sat up gently, rubbing his eyes and making such an action terribly endearing. "I think we were a little late getting up… Did you sleep well?"

At his last words Blaine sat down on the edge of the bed, careful to avoid Kurt's feet. His face - if such a feat were physically possible - had become even more handsome. It was as if he were a portrait that had at one time seemed complete and magnificent, and yet the genius artist who had first created him suddenly added new colour and vigour to his work, making the life spring out from each stroke of the brush, each shadow and hue caused a new radiance and a new spark of animation. Or maybe Kurt's infatuated imagination was running away with itself again… either way it was good.

"Very well," Kurt breathed, delightedly but he suddenly frowned a little and then playfully shooed him off of the bed so that he could get dressed immediately.

Blaine obeyed, all though secretly reluctant.

"So… to the Great Hall?" Kurt asked, walking to the middle of the room once he had put on his robes, to where Blaine now stood.

He wanted to kiss him again, or to put his arm around him, or hold his hand… but just thinking of such actions made him nervous.

It was like being a child who had forever been told that a certain toy was off limits and forbidden. That had been told if he tried to touch or play with the toy he would be in trouble and so had done everything in his power to distract himself and restrain himself from doing so, even though he dreamt to be able to do so constantly. Only to one day have his parents turn around and say that he had permission to use it and now feeling suddenly coy, so used to the taboos which surrounded it, and not having a clue where to begin.

Kurt was so new to all this sort of thing and he felt very much out of his depth.

Blaine's eyes lit up as Kurt's mind whirred over such complexities.

"I'll race you to breakfast," He declared childishly and Kurt rolled his eyes at the juvenile glint in his eyes.

Then Blaine leant forward slightly, a more serious expression painted upon his features, yet still light-hearted.

"Kurt, you know a while back when you asked me how my first kiss was?"

Kurt's nodded but his brow furrowed in confusion as Blaine brought his lips up close to the countertenor's ear and whispered; "It was incredible... Like soaring above the clouds…"

He kissed the corner of Kurt's jaw briefly, just below the ear, sending a phenomenal thrill through his body from the contact and the new information.

Yet the older Gryffindor gave him no time to react properly, as he initiated their "race" to breakfast by ducking out of the door and galloping down the marble steps.

"Wait…Blaine!" Kurt yelled, outraged, as he shot after him.

* * *

><p>Kurt sped down the steps and across the common room where Blaine was nowhere in sight. Since when had he been so damn fast?<p>

Kurt was already out of breath, his mind racing at a mile a minute as well as his heart – exerted from the unfamiliar exercise - and he leapt towards the portrait of the Fat Lady.

It swung open to allow him to exit and he lurched out onto the landing before the staircase.

He ran forward wildly, ready to set off at a sprint down the moving staircase, but then a hand found his hip bone and an arm slid around his waist, another joining it as Blaine hugged him firmly from behind.

Kurt jumped slightly, yet couldn't help but sink into the warm embrace as Blaine rested his chin on Kurt's shoulder and the countertenor reflexively leant his own head against his, cheek brushing against his hair.

Blaine had obviously been hiding to the side of the Fat Lady's portrait.

"You didn't really think that I'd leave without you, did you?" Blaine said under his breath, lips moving against the skin on Kurt's neck as he spoke.

Kurt turned around, causing Blaine to drop his arms from around his middle.

"Blaine, what did you mean earlier, when you said…?" Kurt found it difficult to complete the sentence and Blaine licked the corner of his mouth as he glanced to one side sheepishly.

"How about we walk to the Great Hall and I shall explain on the way?" He suggested. Kurt's eyes narrowed, feeling that he deserved the explanation there and then, but Blaine merely ducked beneath the countertenor's arm and proceeded to walk. He stopped a few steps ahead, however, looked over his shoulder and asked; "Well, did you want an answer to your question or not?"

Kurt grumbled inaudibly and shot daggers at the older Gryffindor, who grinned as they both headed in the same direction again, footsteps matching the other in perfect synchronicity.

* * *

><p>Kurt looked irritated as he kept his eyes on the floor as they walked.<p>

"What is it?" Blaine asked, not expecting so negative a reaction to his confession.

"I can't believe… after all of what you said about first kisses not being a big deal…and now I find out that I was yours. And I don't get to share that experience because mine was stolen from me." Kurt muttered darkly, suddenly in a very foul mood.

"Well, to be fair, my mother said a girl named Judy Melanaid kissed me on my first day of nursery school when I was three. I don't remember it, but we can count it if this revelation really makes you that upset."

He attempted to tease the younger boy, but Kurt was not so accepting of these taunts.

Blaine nudged his elbow gently into Kurt's side.

"Come on, it really doesn't matter, I don't care that I wasn't your first kiss and you shouldn't either."

"But I do care. A lot." Kurt said solemnly, eyes fixed on the ground as though waiting for it to open up so he could fall right through it. "And I'm sure you do a bit, don't lie to make me feel better."

Just then a lighter touch found him as Blaine's thumb and forefinger found their way beneath his chin, stopping him in his tracks as the vocalist moved to stand directly before him in the empty corridor.

He smiled as he allowed his hand to fall and stroke a soft line down Kurt's neck, fingertips resting against the ridge of his collarbone and his palm pressed against his chest so that the base of his wrist could feel the eccentric boy's fastened heartbeat.

"No, I don't, because Karofsky may have stolen your first kiss, but I managed to get your first willing one, the one that you happily returned. That means I chose the option where I am permitted to kiss you because you actually want me to… and that sounds like a much better alternative, does it not?" He said in a low voice as Kurt forgot how to breathe.

Blaine leant forward, lips just hovering over Kurt's own mouth, before they curled upwards and he dipped his head to one side, removing his hand from the countertenor's chest and continuing to walk once more.

Kurt needed a moment to readjust his thoughts and relearn his respiratory functions before running to catch him up once more.

"Okay, so why didn't you tell me when I asked you before?" Kurt demanded now, feeling a little frustrated from Blaine's tantalizing behaviour.

Blaine seemed to falter a little bit at this question - his new daring that had been born from the night before was wavering slightly.

"… I suppose I was embarrassed."

"Why?" Kurt asked, perplexed as to the reason behind Blaine's shame when Kurt's own experience had hardly been one to compare with on any podium of envy.

Blaine rubbed the back of his neck timidly. "I guess I didn't want to appear… immature."

Blaine looked up to catch Kurt looking at him in utter befuddlement and laughed a little, clasping his hands behind his back.

"What? Is that really so surprising? I found out pretty quickly that you sort of… looked up to me as an older student. I didn't want to deter such an impression, as at that time it was the only sort of hold I had over you… Man, that sounds controlling, but you know what I mean? I didn't want to give you any reason to no longer wish to spend time with me."

Blaine fumbled over his words in an inexplicable hurry to justify himself and now Kurt was the one who found himself smiling as he watched the red tint creep onto the older boy's features.

"Got some ego on you there," He told Blaine in mocking, this seemed to make him relax a little and Kurt rolled his eyes; "Surely you must have known I wouldn't think badly of you once we got closer?"

Blaine nodded. "No… Then I knew I could trust you with such admittance… but I didn't quite know how to bring it up… it's not one of those things where you just stroll into the common room and announce it to the world. Then the longer I waited to tell you the harder it got… Well, you know the drill." He said with a wave of his hand.

Kurt smirked slightly as they walked so close to one another that their shoulders brushed.

"I am sort of glad that you told me now…"

Blaine raised an eyebrow as the neared the Great Hall's doors and he turned to face the boy beside him. "Oh? I thought it bothered you that I was not yours?"

Kurt pondered this for a second, looking to the ceiling for the right words, before his eyes returned to Blaine, a sweet smile twinkling within them without needing to appear on his lips.

"It did… but then again, in a way you were. You were my first kiss that meant something." He shrugged, pretending to remain casual.

Blaine broke out into a beaming smile and then he tilted his head to stare up at the great oak doors.

"Well, this is going to be interesting then," He murmured, glancing across at Kurt.

"I'm sure there will be a few questions for us to answer…" Kurt agreed.

"And a few whispers to endure," Blaine warned.

"Probably a bit more than whispers." Kurt said uneasily, pursing his lips together.

Blaine kept his eyes on the boy beside him until he chose to meet his gaze.

"Together?" Blaine suggested, holding out his hand.

Kurt took it, slowly slotting his own into place, fingers intertwining as though somebody had specifically crafted the perfect fit. Like two halves of one heart.

* * *

><p>The two boys would forever remember the bizarre experience they shared as they made their way through the Great Hall that morning.<p>

As they walked through the aisles, hand in hand, they felt each pair of eyes turn to face them. Watching. Staring in amazement at the sight before them.

It was not a particularly hostile look, more curious and shocked.

Shocked was probably the best word for it. Some of the students just didn't know what to make of it and had obviously not seen it coming.

However, the vast majority of the student body had realised, most of them had probably done so long before both of the boys had themselves. If anything, their own surprise derived from their unwillingness to believe that the couple had finally got a grip on the situation that had seemed so blatant and had actually managed to get it together.

The whispers started in quick succession from the stares; their peers lowered their heads, talking avidly in hushed voices as they continued to glance at Kurt and Blaine as they walked down what felt like the longest stretch of floor in the world.

Soon the entire room was abuzz with the news and not one single witch or wizard had failed to notice the new development. Even members of the teacher's table had put their heads together, whispering similar fancies. When Blaine looked up at them he could have sworn that Professor McGonagall had even tipped her hat in his direction, last years discrepancies apparently forgotten.

Truly bizarre.

He looked up at the boy who stood beside him, whose fingers were interlocked with his own and whose palm radiated a pleasant warmth which was so prominent it seemed to run the length of his arm, causing the hairs to stand on end the way they usually only did when chilled.

He squeezed Blaine's hand tenderly and tilted his head towards him, a fleeting look in his eyes that Blaine read to mean that this was a good response from the inhabitants of Hogwarts, and reprimanding him for looking like a deer caught in headlights.

Yet he was still too stunned for words.

One thing neither boy allowed themselves to do, however, was cast their eyes in the direction of Slytherin House.

They knew that the glares that would meet them there would be nothing but disgust and disapproval. Not only because of what one would typically assume would cause outrage from the sight of the two boys together, but because anything a Gryffindor did inherited such a reaction, particularly ones that caused them any degree of joy. The happiness emanating from the pair would be enough to turn each Slytherin cold with hatred and malice.

To be quite frank, though, neither boy could care less. They would be despised no matter what they did and so why feel guilty for something that was, in their opinion, a very good thing.

Kurt tried to think of a moment where he had felt more proud to stand beside anyone in his entire life and he could not possibly envisage one. He merely smiled coyly at Blaine, heart picking up a beat as though it were dancing to the sound of their footsteps as they continued to walk towards the table.

Towards the people who's faces they most wanted to see, whom they were eager to gage the reactions from. The two boys exchanged grins as they quickened their pace towards Rachel, Mercedes and Finn who sat at the far end of the Gryffindor table.

As they spied them now, they could already gather their exact responses to the two boys that were quite clearly joined together by more than their mere fingertips.

Rachel was grinning from ear to ear, positively bubbling up from her seat as she waved the two of them over excitedly. Kurt prepared himself for a torrent of ridiculous exclamations, questions and references to her two gay dads - all delivered at an unbelievably fast pace and shrill pitch.

Mercedes wore a much more subtle smile. Well, it was most accurately labelled a smirk, which played around her features as gleefully as a kitten runs after a ball of string. She couldn't help but snigger a little as the two Gryffindors approached, eyeing Kurt with a knowing expression, that he returned by shrugging his shoulders and glancing to the side, pretending to have no idea why she would be so tremendously amused. In fact, she would remain giggling from time to time throughout the entire course of breakfast, if not the rest of the day. Her gloats were bound to become unbearable in a matter of hours, if not minutes.

Finn sat on the end, brow furrowed for a moment before he allowed them to gradually raise into his hairline, matching the same sort of shock that other Hogwarts students (ones that Kurt and Blaine did not know) possessed on their faces. Naturally, he had been clueless to the whole affair while it had been undergone.

Kurt smiled to himself: some things never changed, but the things that did – he stole one last glance at the profile of the boy next to him – could be remarkably staggering.

* * *

><p>"Blaine, why are you walking so quickly?" Kurt demanded as the older Gryffindor pulled Kurt anxiously by the hand as they exited the Great Hall. For some unknown reason he had insisted that they leave the dining room five minutes before it was typical to – earning them more stares at this sudden strange departure – meaning that Kurt hadn't even managed to finish his eggs.<p>

"Can't explain now. Let's just go." Blaine said hurriedly, glancing over his shoulder.

Kurt began to feel himself filling with alarm as he had to jog in order to keep up with the racing Quidditch Keeper.

"I don't understand," He said, utterly perplexed by the sudden haste and urgency that had struck the older boy, and Kurt noted that his palms had begun to sweat slightly, eyes now darting in all directions. "What are you looking for?"

"It's not what, it's-"

But before he could finish his sentence Kurt was wrenched apart from Blaine by a sudden force that sent him spinning off to one side.

He managed to steady himself, splaying his hands out to the side in order to catch himself on one of the walls next to where they had been walking.

He was unharmed.

The same, however, may not have been so readily said for Blaine.

Kurt heard his strangled yelp and looked up just in time to see the three bodies crash into him, knocking him flat on his back.

A loud cheering exploded from the three attackers as they bundled the helpless vocalist to the floor - he had obviously been expecting such a tackle, hands over his head in a brace position.

"I FUCKING KNEW IT!"

"ABOUT BLOODY TIME!"

"WHEEEEEEEYYY!"

Kurt had to thrust his fist into his mouth to stop himself from laughing and thus risk being thoroughly reprimanded for doing so later by Blaine.

The boy in question tried to sit up and scramble to his escape from his three supposed-friends, but they weren't having any of it as they pulled him into a bone breaking three-way hug with himself sandwiched in the middle.

Trent put Blaine in a head-lock and ruffled his newly placed hair with his knuckles, upsetting the arrangement terribly.

"Thatta boy!"

Blaine hurriedly pushed his head back through the hole to wriggle free of the Hufflepuff's clutches.

Wes rolled backwards now, clutching his stomach as he could barely breathe through his hysterics and occasional whooping.

"You have no idea how happy this makes me! Do you _know _the amount of pranks I have been conjuring up just waiting for you two to get a move on?"

"Speaking of two…" David said, raising an eyebrow at Kurt, whose eyes widened in fright, but before he could possibly find a way of protecting himself David had flicked his wand and, as if pulled by an invisible lasso, Kurt was tugged into the pile, tripping over Wes' flailing legs that kicked into the air through his peels of laughter, and collapsed onto Blaine.

This well-positioned fall did nothing to help the boy's guffaws as they clapped Blaine on the back and Kurt flushed a deep shade of crimson to match his scarf.

"Well, don't mind us!" Trent roared.

"Yeah, we didn't mean to get in the middle of you guys and your hormones," David said, acting as though he were horrified by being in such close proximity to the pair of them.

"Honestly, you two, could you try and keep your pants on for two seconds, children attend this school too, you know, they don't need to witness your vulgar displays of pornography!" Wes added, sitting up, legs crossed like a kid himself, a wide and playful gaping smile playing across his features. His tongue even stuck out his mouth a little like a puppy.

David and Trent sat back, arms stretched to either side of themselves as though they were outside having a merry picnic instead of tangled within one another in the centre of the castle's corridor.

The last few snickers faded and they all looked round at each other. Wes, Trent and David all exchanged thrilled glances, thoroughly pleased with themselves. Blaine and Kurt gave each other exasperated looks, Blaine trying to convey his deepest apologies and Kurt merely shut his eyes and shaking his head, opening them once more to indicate that it was okay and that it would have only been a matter of time before they would have had to endure the trio's antics.

Blaine grimaced at the truth of this silent fact and sighed to himself.

The two Ravenclaws and the Hufflepuff staggered to their feet now, and surprised the two boys by extending their hands to help them to their feet also.

Wes even dusted off Kurt's shoulders, knowing how he liked to keep his clothes dirt-free, however he did keep his hands resting on Kurt's upper arm a little longer than was comfortable and stuck his tongue out mischievously at Blaine in doing so.

They should have known such kind gestures would not have lasted long, as suddenly Trent ducked behind Blaine and scooped up his legs in one quick motion, hoisting him onto his shoulders due to his large frame and lifting him high above the crowds that had just begun to swarm from the Great Hall.

Kurt had no such luck in remaining unscathed either, as the hand of Wes' that lay on his arm now pulled it out so that he and David were able to lift the countertenor above their heads together and follow Trent down the corridor. The three of them cheered and wolf whistled as they went, allowing immense entertainment for all surrounding eyes as they shouted:

"Make way, make way! New royalty coming through! Meet the King and Queen of Hogwarts, everybody! You shall bow down to Your Majesty!"

The last part even resulted in a 1st Year falling to his knees before one of the Prefects hauled him to his feet again and scolded the 7th Years - who ignored such disciplinary words.

"Let's throw them in the Hidden Swimming Pool!" Trent yelled, holding them higher.

"Does that even exist?" Kurt asked, a little panicked, but Blaine merely rolled his eyes and shook his head but then turned towards the countertenor and, seeing his distressed expression, couldn't help but burst out into laughter at it. As always with his three friends, it was totally ludicrous and Kurt finally smiled with a what-else can-we –do? Expression laid on his features, eyebrows raised and lips twisted to the side as he shrugged.

They may as well enjoy themselves since they weren't getting out of this any time soon.

* * *

><p>Mercedes sat in the library that evening, tongue between her teeth as her brow furrowed in concentration. No matter how hard she stared, however, the Ancient Runes just wouldn't decipher themselves and eventually she let out a noise of aggravation, slapping her quill down on the table and shoving the textbook so that it thudded against the wall that her table was leant against.<p>

A soft chuckle rang out behind her, making her jump and whip her head around.

David leant against one of the bookshelves behind her, arms folded and a small smile playing across his lips as he watched the feisty Gryffindor frown in his direction.

"What the hell? What are you trying to give me a heart attack or something?" She scolded him, shaking her head and turning it back around to her studies, raising on hand to her temples as she realised how stressed out she must be to be so on edge.

"Perhaps you should take a break?" He suggested, stepping out from the wall and walking up to stand beside her. He reached out a hand to turn over the page of her text book and grimaced; "Heavy stuff."

Mercedes snorted. "Don't tell me; you could work it out in two seconds flat?" She said in bitter sarcasm.

He chewed the inside of his cheek, squinting at the puzzle for a second. Then his face relaxed into an easy smile.

Her face fell; "…You're not serious?"

He pulled her book back towards them both, picking up her quill and scrawling a few words down in the margin.

She gaped at the parchment and then turned to glare at him.

"Aw hell no! You don't even do Ancient Runes!"

David shrugged and leant against the table beside her, crossing his legs at the ankles and tipping his head towards the ceiling. "No, I don't."

Mercedes stared at him for a moment then turned back to her work and grumbled darkly; "Bloody Ravenclaw…"

David laughed at this once more and Mercedes sighed, shoving the books back into her bag, admitting defeat at long last.

She looked up to find that David was still waiting by the other table, looking politely at her.

He was quiet.

David was very rarely quiet.

Mercedes raised her eyebrows expectantly. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"You must be relieved." He told her.

"About what?" She asked, puzzled by his evasive statements and slinging her bag over her shoulder.

"Kurt and Blaine - I imagine that it has put your mind at ease now that you no longer need to worry about Kurt's feelings being reciprocated and him having his heart broken."

David stated the words plainly, and Mercedes was surprised to hear the accuracy of the short speech. His eyes shone meaningfully through the dim light and Mercedes narrowed her own eyes at the 7th Year troublemaker.

"Yes, I am glad that Blaine finally came to his senses – what you guys told me about his wavering emotions and conflictions had me going for a while there."

She made her way towards the Library exit and David fell into step with her, hands clasped behind his back as he angled his body towards her as they walked.

"It had us going for a while, too, we've grown to care for Kurt a lot and if Blaine had hurt him… Well, let's just say we certainly wouldn't have let him get off scot-free… Then again, I knew he'd realise eventually."

They carried along down the corridor, David hot on her heels. It was not as though she didn't like David, in fact she enjoyed his company immensely, since he was one of the funniest and strangely sweetest guys she had ever known, yet she couldn't help but be a bit confused by his random appearance now.

She very rarely spoke to the Ravenclaw boy when his two amigos were not in toe, and generally if they were together alone, such meetings were fleeting and never had she been sought out by the mischievous boy.

Still, she smiled at his comment; "Well, I am thankful that he did – Kurt was about to drive me insane with his constant fretting over them two. I mean, jeez, I am glad that he finally found himself able to come to me, but that boy is nothing if not obsessive over these things!"

David chuckled and looked down at the short Gryffindor girl; "Yes… He does seem to have that quality about him doesn't he? In fairness, I think Blaine was just as bad, but he keeps it to himself more effectively than your flamboyant friend."

Mercedes rolled her eyes and nodded as they found their way to the moving staircases.

"Not that I want to be rude…" Mercedes began.

"Oh don't say that," He grinned at her sideways, sticking his tongue out between his teeth; "Whenever someone says that they're almost always very rude straight afterwards."

Mercedes laughed and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she shook her head at his cheek.

"_But,_" She continued regardless; "Why have you tracked me down to talk about our two friends… especially now deliberately on my own, when you know that any one of our other friends would be just as thrilled to discuss the new developments."

David smirked as they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady and came to a halt as he looked down at her, a strange light twinkling behind his eyes.

"Okay, so they're not exactly the sole reason why I came to find you this evening." He admitted.

She raised one eyebrow and waited, jutting her head out a little to convey her impatience in regards to the information he was storing.

He did not seem too nervous as he spoke the next words; he remained forever calm and confident, with an air of nonchalance that all three of Blaine's friends possessed at all times:

"I was wondering if you would like to go out with me some time? …On a sort of date, if you will."

Mercedes was so taken aback by the offer that she almost took a physical step back in amazement, her mouth dropping open in shock and both eyebrows now arching in surprise.

"Me?"

Was the first word out of her mouth.

David glanced from left to right and winked; "Do you see anybody else around?"

"Why?"

Was the second.

David shrugged. "Because I like you? Do I need a better reason?"

Mercedes opened her mouth, then closed it again, unsure of what it was she could supply as an answer. She was utterly gobsmacked and speechless by his proposal.

He chuckled again; "I'll let you mull it over, shall I?"

He bent low and kissed her forehead swiftly, before he whispered; "I'll be waiting on the edge of my seat."

And with that he seemed to vanish into thin air, leaving Mercedes standing, her head in a haze, as she stared at the place where the charming Ravenclaw had just been situated.

* * *

><p>Kurt and Blaine sat together on the windowsill of the Owlery, Kurt's head rested against Blaine's shoulder as both pairs of feet dangled outside of the window, yet Blaine still had his arm wrapped tightly around Kurt's middle, to prevent him from falling out of it, as he had once joked about the first time they had met up here. He was glad that such memories could overtake the darker ones of his past, so that he could come to the tower without that sense of pain, but more the ease of it when the younger Gryffindor sat beside him.<p>

He rested his chin on the top of Kurt's head and inhaled his deliciously sweet scent. He closed his eyes for a moment.

Then he heard a soft sound, only distinguishable as a murmur at first; rise up from the lips that he knew to be beneath him with that unmistakable voice:

_Lying here with you so close to me_

_It's hard to fight these feelings when it feels so hard to breathe _

Kurt closed his eyes as he snuggled deeper into Blaine's chest, the lyrics of the song escaping easily from his lips as they had already been born from his heart:

_I'm caught up in this moment _

_Caught up in your smile…_

He tilted his head to look as Blaine did indeed smile down at the content countertenor, recognizing the song and his cue, which the boy that he held wished him to take up. He did not need telling twice, especially as the next lines spoke the truth better than he could have believed:

_I've never opened up to anyone _

_So hard to hold back_

_When I'm holding you in my arms_

Kurt smiled as well as their voices joined together harmoniously, being tangled within one another just as their bodies were:

_We don't need to rush this, let's just take it slow…_

_Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight _

_Just a touch of the fire burning so bright _

_I don't want to mess this thing up _

_No, I don't want to push too far _

_Just a shot in the dark that you just might _

_Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life _

_So baby I'm all right,_

_With just a kiss goodnight_

Blaine leant down towards Kurt's lips, but the latter pulled away at the last moment, grinning and sitting back from the older boy, who clicked his tongue, but with a smile still remaining on his features.

_I know that if we give this a little time _

_It will only bring us closer to the love we wanna find _

_It's never felt so real,_

_No it's never felt so right_

Kurt found Blaine's hand and allowed his own to melt into it as naturally as snow melts into the ground, pressing his skin to feel the reality of his hold.

_Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight _

_Just a touch of the fire burning so bright _

_No, I don't want to mess this thing up _

_I don't want to push too far_

_Just a shot in the dark that you just might_

_Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life _

_So baby I'm all right,_

_With just a kiss goodnight_

Kurt quickly pulled his hand away though, and got to his feet, walking back one step into the moonlit streaked Owlery, his face glowing from the light which beamed down on him, looking mischievously at the Blaine, who had jumped to his feet now as well, opening his mouth to belt the next line:

_No, I don't want to say goodnight _

He came up close to the brave boy, walking around him and brushing his shoulder along the length of Kurt's own before coming to rest his chin on his left one.

_I know it's time to leave,_

_But you'll be in my dreams_

_Tonight _

_Tonight _

_Tonight_

He took his hands once more and sang in earnest:

_Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight _

_Just a touch in the fire burning so bright _

_No I don't want to mess this thing up _

_I don't want to push too far _

_Just a shot in the dark that you just might _

_Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life_

Their bodies pressed together adoringly as they found it impossible to take their eyes off of the other's, locked in this problematic conundrum as their souls soared with the song they sang for one another.

_So baby I'm all right,_

_Oh, let's do this right,_

_With just a kiss goodnight _

_With a kiss goodnight _

_Kiss goodnight_

And with that Blaine leant forward to receive the kiss which Kurt finally gave him permission to have, putting his hands around the older boy's neck and pulling him closer.

Pavarotti hooted merrily and swooped into his nest, nuzzling into the soft bedding and closing his eyes peacefully.


	26. Chapter 25: Drama

Chapter Twenty-Five: Drama

(Songs: Boys Like Girls – Thunder)

* * *

><p>Santana led Brittany by the hand into the Armour Room.<p>

The blonde Hufflepuff stared around at all of the steely suits and her brow furrowed as she looked to her friend:

"I don't get it, are we preparing to battle?"

"No," Santana replied quickly.

"Then why are we here? Metal makes my toes get swollen."

Santana attempted to ignore the last comment, instead focusing upon subduing the adrenaline that was now pumping through her veins so much that she was surprised it was not audible.

"We're here because I need the strength," Santana said with a wave of her hand at the pun. "Here, sit."

She flicked her wand and one of the stools zoomed over to behind where Brittany stood and she obliged by following the beautiful Slytherin's orders.

She looked up expectantly at Santana, who took a deep breath.

"I have something to tell you, Brit, and I know I'm not one to jump on the band wagon – mostly because anyone else's ideas besides my own suck and often make me physically sick when I have to put up with them – but this singing stuff that's going on around here isn't so bad… apart from when that Hobbit Gryffindor does it… what I am trying to say is this: I have a song and I want to sing to you, Brit, and I want… I want you to really pay attention."

Brittany waited and Santana looked at her a moment, to make sure she was not about to make a comment about in which currency you had to pay attention in. She did not, thankfully.

_Here goes_, she told herself.

_Today is a winding road that's taking me to places that I didn't want to go_

_Whoa (whoa, whoa, whoa)_

_Today in the blink of an eye I'm holding on to something and I do not know why_

_I tried_

_I tried to read between the lines_

_I tried to look in your eyes_

_I want a simple explanation_

_For what I'm feeling inside_

_I gotta find a way out_

_Maybe there's a way out_

_Your voice was the soundtrack of my summer_

_Do you know you're unlike any other?_

_You'll always be my thunder, and I said_

_Your eyes are the brightest of all the colors_

_I don't wanna ever love another_

_You'll always be my thunder_

_So bring on the rain_

_And bring on the thunder_

_Today is a winding road_

_Tell me where to start and tell me something I don't know_

_Whoa (whoa, whoa, whoa)_

_Today I'm on my own_

_I can't move a muscle and I can't pick up the phone_

_I don't know (I don't know, I don't know, I don't know)_

_And now I'm itching for the tall grass_

_And longing for the breeze_

_I need to step outside_

_Just to see if I can breathe_

_I gotta find a way out_

_Maybe there's a way out_

_Your voice was the soundtrack of my summer_

_Do you know you're unlike any other?_

_You'll always be my thunder, and I said_

_Your eyes are the brightest of all the colors_

_I don't wanna ever love another_

_You'll always be my thunder_

_So bring on the rain_

_Yeah I'm walking on a tightrope_

_I'm wrapped up in vines_

_I think we'll make it out_

_But you just gotta give me time_

_Strike me down with lightning_

_Let me feel you in my veins_

_I wanna let you know how much I feel your pain_

_Today is a winding road that's taking me to places that I didn't want to go_

_Whoa_

_Your voice was the soundtrack of my summer_

_Do you know you're unlike any other?_

_You'll always be my thunder, and I said_

_Your eyes are the brightest of all the colors_

_I don't wanna ever love another_

_You'll always be my thunder_

_So bring on the rain_

_And bring on the thunder, and I said_

_Your voice was the soundtrack of my summer_

_Do you know you're unlike any other?_

_You'll always be my thunder_

_So bring on the rain_

_Oh baby bring on the pain_

_And listen to the thunder_

Santana went to sit beside Brittany and she tentatively lifted her hand to tuck a strand of hair behind the Hufflepuff's ear.

"Do you…understand what I am trying to say there?" She asked, anxiously. She knew Brittany could always figure out the things that mattered. She was smart in her own way, no matter what anyone else said. She could be so wise, when you gave her a chance to speak what she felt in her heart.

Brittany looked down at the floor. "Santana, are you saying that you like me… like a girl likes another girl instead of how they like a boy?"

"No Brittany, I am saying that I _love _you like a girl loves another girl," She said, burning intensity in her eyes so that there could be no confusion.

"Why didn't you tell me before… is that why you've been acting so funny lately?" Brittany asked, struggling to process the information.

Santana's face fell.

"Do you not love me back, Brittany?"

"I didn't say that!" She insisted, shaking her head. "I'm just trying to figure this out: we've been friends for forever, but recently you've been pretending like I don't exist… and now you're telling me you're gay and-"

"I'm not gay." Santana snapped. "I just love you, Brittany, can you not just focus on that part?"

She looked at her with desperate eyes, needing the reciprocation and acceptance after doing the hardest thing she had ever done in her life by confessing her true feelings.

"Santana… I love you too, but I don't know what that means or who that makes me, and I don't think you know either." Brittany said as Santana stood suddenly, arms folded abrasively.

Brittany stood too.

"So you don't want to be with me?" Santana spat the words, tears filling her eyes furiously once more as she swatted them away with her fingertips.

"I didn't say that… I just need – This relationship is really confusing to me and we both need time to sort this all out in our heads. I mean, I think I still like guys… and sometimes I feel a weird thing towards Dolphins… but that doesn't mean I don't like you too-"

She tried to touch Santana's arm, but the Slytherin wrenched it away from her touch.

"Get out," She whispered.

"Santana, we can talk about this… I still love you, I always have… I just don't understand all this… don't you believe me?"

"I don't know what to believe anymore," Santana said bitterly through resented sobs. "Just…Go."

Brittany opened her mouth in an attempt to help the situation, but there were no truthful words that could make it any better, so instead she did as Santana had asked her, and left the room.

Santana shook and clutched the sides of her arms for support, feeling utterly dejected and wanting to dissolve into the earth.

* * *

><p>Kurt and Blaine sat across from each other on the small coffee table, leaning in as far as the wooden slab between them would allow, knees pressed together underneath and continuing a playful dance of their fingertips around the coffee cups and sugar shakers, never touching but just teasing to do so.<p>

Blaine was staring wistfully out of the window at that moment, an unusual occurrence, as he spent most of his time consumed by the boy who sat before him, rather than being swallowed up by the scenery.

"What are you looking at?" Asked Kurt softly, his knuckle gently grazing the back of Blaine's hand that was clamped to his coffee cup, having not moved an inch for a good few minutes.

The older boy jolted to attention, turning back to Kurt and smiling slightly. "I was just looking at Zonko's…it reminded me of something."

Kurt waited, knowing that Blaine would confess the reminiscence to him.

He shook his head and laughed a little; "It's silly really. Just this little accident Nathan had his last year here. He was walking out of the shop with his girlfriend at the time and she had bought those joke-flamethrower sweets. She hadn't known what they were it seems, or had picked up what she thought were ordinary ones. She wasn't the brightest spark, it has to be said."

Blaine chuckled and Kurt was so absorbed in his expression just as he became absorbed in the fond memory of his brother.

"So she, uh, ate one, and of course a jet of flames shot from her mouth and almost torched his entire skull."

Kurt looked suddenly alarmed, this not sounding so cheery a story as Blaine's tone implied.

He held up a hand assuredly.

"No, no, he was fine. He was lucky really, as Hagrid came out of the pub at just the right time and took him to Madame Pomfrey right away."

"This still isn't sounding particularly amusing, Blaine…" Kurt said, severely questioning his humour at this moment.

"He was okay - well, it was scary at the time, but you know Madame Pomfrey-" Kurt recalled his time at the hospital wing last year with limited fondness "- she fixed him up pretty quickly, apart from the fact that his eyebrows got singed and he still had a scar across the bridge of his nose which she never bothered to clean up. It looked so funny, I wish you had seen it, especially when his eyebrows grew back and he forever looked like he had one long brow…"

Blaine's laughter faded as he realised his badly chosen word: "forever", seeing as Nathan must have disappeared only a matter of months afterwards.

Kurt took his hand and he seemed to relax a little.

"Well…. He and his girlfriend weren't together much longer after that, that's for sure." Blaine finished, trying to turn it back into a joke.  
>"So, you come here a lot then?" Kurt asked, changing the subject since he was not fooled by Blaine's façade, and staring around at the little coffee shop.<p>

It was nice and simplistic, but colourful and filled him with warmth and a certain homely feel, even though it was nothing like the place where he lived. Rich mahogany panels lined the sides and the cool black and grey counters encased them, as they were the only two here, having skipped out on breakfast in the Great Hall to come and be alone together.

Paying for food was a small price to pay for that luxury.

Blaine nodded, a content smile spreading across his features to replace any sadness as he stared at the boy before him; "Not many know that it is here in Hogsmeade - it has only been here a little while, but I think the concept is kind of cool, I reckon it'll get popular soon enough."

Kurt looked down at his coffee cup, which was flavoured by three Bertie Botts Every Flavour Bean of your choice – you could even choose the disgusting ones, but they were not always favoured as much. Well, apparently Wes and Trent had once dared one another to eat a Cabbage, Fish and Tar flavoured one. Needless to say, they had not been able to attend lessons for the remainder of that day…

"Mmm: The Lima Bean… I am sure it will catch on," Kurt said thoughtfully, "It's kind of nice to have a quiet place to go, however, away from everyone."

Blaine took a sip of his own coffee, but kept his eyes trained on Kurt as he did so; "I couldn't agree more."

Kurt still averted his eyes as he smiled, reddening slightly. It was not as bad as it had been before, but Blaine still had that overwhelming effect on him, which rendered him completely ineffective.

The boy responsible for this torment leant back, utterly at ease; "It's nice to be alone, but not everyone is so bad… better than I expected, anyway."

It was true; for the most part the students of Hogwarts had been very accepting of the new couple that now roamed their halls. All of their friends had shown them nothing but support, and they even found some of their peers, who they had never talked to, smiling at them as they passed in the corridor. They had been the topic of gossip for a while, it had excited a lot of them, therefore it was hard to tell whether their stares were actually affectionate or in order to gage the latest part of rumour that spread across the castle.

The pair of them weren't all together bothered, however, the people who counted seemed genuinely enthusiastic about the two of them – some showing it more physically and loudly than others – and most of the school merely stayed out of their way when they didn't whisper, as they had always done, so it made little difference. Things were beginning to settle back into normality. Well, apart from…

"The Slytherins still aren't particularly thrilled," Kurt reminded him, stirring his coffee as he mused. He smirked a little; "One of them tried to perform the Bat Bogey Hex on me yesterday, they obviously hadn't practiced it very well though; they missed by about a mile and just made a green bat fly out from underneath one of the hourglasses behind me."

Kurt shook his head and laughed a little as he recalled the agitated expression of the Slytherin who had failed at her spell.

Blaine didn't seem to look as amused, however; "Let's just hope the ones who are more practised at magical craft don't attempt anything…"

Kurt shrugged; "The teachers will get them before they do any damage, right? They can't be _that _mad about it, and it'll blow over. Anyway, it doesn't matter; I think I am pretty well equipped for those sorts of attacks now. I can handle it."

Blaine laughed a little and looked down at the table, shaking his head a little in amazement before raising his head up to look back at Kurt; "Your bravery never fails to astound me sometimes."

Kurt wrinkled his nose a little and smiled; "I'd hardly call it bravery; stupidity and stubbornness, maybe."

"This is true," Blaine answered naughtily and earned himself a small kick from under the table; "What? You said it!"

"You're not supposed to agree with me!" Kurt said in mock-offence. "You're meant to tell me that I am wonderful in every way."

"I believe that a relationship is based on honesty, Kurt, and so I cannot lie to you and tell you that." Blaine replied, sticking his tongue out between his front row of teeth.

"You can be such an annoying boyfriend sometimes, do you know that?" Kurt asked, rolling his eyes scathingly, but a small grin remaining on his lips.

"And you sure do get emotional in the mornings… maybe you've had too much coffee."

Blaine made to pull the coffee cup away from Kurt, who objected strongly to this action and tried to swat Blaine's hand away.

The older Gryffindor had been banking on this move however, as he caught Kurt's wrist gently, and tugged it so that Kurt fell onto his waiting lips.

Their mouths pressed together for one brief second before Blaine pulled back with a triumphant grin, placing his hand against Kurt's cheek and kissing the tip of his nose and chuckling before drawing back to his previous position and looking entirely complacent with himself at that moment, having left Kurt rather flustered.

He scowled a little then, annoyed as Blaine had distracted him from his previous indignation.

Blaine remained perfectly pleased with himself, however, as he leant forward once more and shot Kurt another wicked grin.

"By the way, since when were we boyfriends?"

Kurt's eyes suddenly filled with a certain panic as the lines of his face darkened, the smile on his face dropping like a dead weight.

"What do you mean?" He asked in a small voice.

Blaine raised an eyebrow; "Technically, you haven't asked me out yet. So we're not actually an official couple."

Kurt opened his mouth a little in incredulity, but the light flooded back into his features. "What do you mean that _I _haven't asked _you _out? If you're going to be so damn particular, why don't you do it?"

Blaine pretended to be shocked by this comment, putting a hand over his heart; "I kissed you, didn't I? I think that it is your turn to go out on a limb and ask me out _at least_! Unless you don't want to, in which case I can just go…"

He made no attempt to leave, merely glanced at the door while Kurt clicked his tongue; "You're actually going to make me do it, aren't you?"

Blaine nodded jubilantly:

"Yes. Yes I am."

Kurt sighed as he set down his now empty coffee and fixed Blaine with an unimpressed stare.

"Will you be my boyfriend?"

"Aww, come on, you can try it with a little more feeling that that!" Blaine exclaimed, thoroughly enjoying himself.

Kurt took a deep breath and looked at the delighted boy before him. He could be a troublesome pain in the ass at times, but even so, when he acted like this Kurt couldn't help but find it impossible to ever be genuinely angry with him -however annoying this fact may be. He made him feel safe, that fact at least was undeniable. And the truth was that Kurt had needed that for a long time now, and he had also needed the joy that the boy before him had brought with his arrival into his life. Kurt sighed a little, and in spite of his slight wish to throttle the older boy for his impudence, he couldn't help but just feel lucky at having him there at all.

"Blaine, nothing would make me happier than if you would agree to be with me, to be my boyfriend, will you do me such an honour?"

Blaine stretched his hands forward to slide them into Kurt's softly and squeezed them tight, deadly serious for just a second:

"For your happiness… How could I possibly refuse?"

* * *

><p>"Very good, Miss Jones, 10 points to Gryffindor," Professor McGonagall proclaimed as Mercedes leant to her left where Kurt sat beside her and smiled, he returned the smile with a slight nudge of approval and then they high fived once the Transfigurations Teacher's back was turned. Kurt's other hand was tucked into Blaine's under the table on the other side.<p>

"Now, if you would all please turn to page 12 you will see the assignment for next lesson. I trust that you have all of the required equipment to be brought along at that time?"

She turned back around and Finn bit his lip; "I may have misplaced by practice goblet, Professor."

McGonagall sighed, and curled her fingers around her wand absent-mindedly. "Never mind, Mr Hudson, I shall supply you with another. Anyone else have any difficulties or queries in relation to next lesson?"

The class was silent.

"Very well, it is almost time for the bell, but I will allow you to escape five minutes early this afternoon, so long as you do not abuse such a privilege and run riot around the school…" She fixed them with a steely glare to make sure they would not do so. "Mr Anderson?"

Blaine looked up from the last few notes he had been scribbling from Mercedes' final answer.

"Yes, Professor?"

"May I have a word with you up front while the rest of the class pack away their things?"

Blaine shot an anxious glance at Kurt, who squeezed his hand before he nodded and rose from his seat.

The noise of the rest of them clearing up the tables from where they had been transfiguring slugs into quills (what had turned out to be a rather messy exercise, since the feather fragments glued themselves to the slime) so Blaine and McGonagall's conversation was not overheard – hard as some of the students tried to listen.

"I trust that you are not finding the work all that difficult so far this year?" She asked him.

"It's always a challenge, Professor," He told her and her usually tight lips turned up in a small smile at this.

"As it should be. I just wanted to say that I am glad to see you back and behaving so well. I take it that the events of last year are far behind us?"

"Absolutely," Blaine responded with utter sincerity. He had Kurt, and that alone removed any desire to ever want to endanger himself or his newly-established boyfriend with anything so reckless again.

McGonagall seemed to notice his slightly dreamy expression at these thoughts; "I had realised the growing relationship between you and Mr Hummel, and all though I do hope that had nothing to do with yours and Mr Karofsky's quarrel-"

The shifty expression that flitted across Blaine's face certainly confirmed it to have been, but she decided to ignore this.

"- I do wish to warn you that there are some people in this school who are known to be a little… intolerant. Of course, our policies here at Hogwarts mean we are strict, but we teachers cannot be everywhere, so I would urge that you seek assistance at once if any… unpleasantries occur."

Blaine looked at her in surprise, having not expected this. He knew the exact group of people who she referred to, of course, and his stomach sank a little in regards to what Kurt had told him earlier.

"Thank you, Professor…" He said, still deliberating whether or not to mention this event, but he never got a chance for his thoughts to reach a conclusion…

…As just then there was a shriek from the back of the classroom.

Both the teacher and her students whipped their heads around reflexively at the sound and a short dark-haired Slytherin girl jumped up, leapt over her seat, which clanged to the floor, and stared down at something.

Quinn had gone very pale as she looked up and her eyes connected with McGonagall.

"Professor… I think my waters just broke."

An array of pandemonium broke out in the classroom as half of the class pelted away from the Ravenclaw girl, and the other half rushed towards her.

Finn was the first by her side.

"All right! All right! Out of the way!" McGonagall called over the commotion as the students dispersed while she walked through the centre of them.

Blaine stepped up behind where Kurt was standing; trying to clear away some of the other chairs surrounding Quinn so that McGonagall could reach her.

The gaggle of students held back now, still peering eagerly over each other's heads.

"Right, we need to get you to St Mungos, Miss Fabray, are you feeling all right?"

"I think so," The pretty blonde girl replied, but she looked very white and her eyes bulged in fear as she looked up at Finn, the only one who had refused to leave her side.

"Can I go with her?" He asked suddenly, as McGonagall conjured a patronus in the shape of a cat that flew out of the classroom.

She had sent word to Dumbledore.

"I hardly think that is a good idea, Mr Hudson." She said, tight-lipped and not looking favourably at the idea.

"Please, Professor," Quinn breathed wildly. "I want him to be there."

She paused for a moment and flicked her eyes between the two of them and the large bump on Quinn's middle.

"Okay…" She finally allowed.

Finn knew exactly what she had assumed, because it was the same supposition reached by every other student surrounding them. Mercedes, Kurt and Blaine looked at each other, eye brows raised, Kurt frowning in confusion about his earlier suspicions. Santana and Brittany were both gaping, but not at one another, looking a little lost since they had no one to share their mutual looks of shock with.

Yet, at that moment in time, he couldn't care less about the rumours that would now spread around the school. He had a duty to his friend and the people of Hogwarts could think what they liked.

Rachel stood watching this unfold, feeling a chill run the length of her spine and a rough wave of discomfort crash through her stomach.

* * *

><p>Their class had been sent out into the corridor as Quinn was escorted off the premises with Finn at her side. Their friends watched them go, still all too speechless to delve into conversation, most of them worried about the Ravenclaw girl and unable to process the experience which was quite unlike any other they had ever undergone.<p>

Brittany was the first to move as she looked at Santana, the Slytherin girl averted her eyes and Brittany's expression turned a deep shade of pink to convey her anger.

"Fine, be that way," She hissed so that only Santana could hear, having been fed up with her antics; she knew she had upset her, but she had thought that this would make her at least willing to discuss Quinn.

Apparently not.

Brittany instead stalked off down the corridor, to go and find someone who wanted to engage in a conversation with her, and someone who she could share her concerns with.

Santana watched her go, hating herself and laying her back against the wall, closing her eyes with her arms folded, trying to drown out the conversations the Gryffindors were now having all around her.

"Why did Finn go with her? I know they're friends but…" Mercedes said first, staring after the place where their tall friend had disappeared.

"You don't think that…?" Blaine asked, his eyes shot to Kurt, who knew him the best, and the two other Gryffindor girl's went to him also.

Kurt shook his head.

"No?" Rachel demanded. "How do you know?"

Kurt shrugged. "I don't know, but I trust Finn, and I don't think he would have kept that sort of thing from me if it were true. Also, I just don't see it."

Blaine seemed to accept this as an answer, but Mercedes and Rachel remained sceptical, glancing at one another, Mercedes remembering the confession Rachel had made to her a short while back. Jesse was still not speaking to her.

Mercedes nudged Rachel and tried to signal to her a question of whether she wanted to leave and talk about things.

Rachel nodded once.

"We have to go and see Sprout about our Herbology paper," Mercedes lied. "See you guys later, yeah?"

Kurt and Blaine bid them farewell, noticing how the hallway was more or less empty now, the scene of interest having now evaporated and the students being required to go on to their next classes. The two boys, like Mercedes and Rachel, had a free period at that moment, but they were still both in a slight shock because of what had just happened.

Santana was now the only other person present, eyes still closed and lips still shut, oblivious to the rest of the world.

Or so it seemed they were alone for a little while, that is, until three Slytherins emerged at the other end of the corridor and walked straight for them.

* * *

><p>Both boy's eyes darted around themselves, instantly sensing the danger and gravitating closer towards each other when they realised that they were truly alone and surrounded by Slytherins.<p>

Slytherins who looked at them with hateful eyes.

One Slytherin the pair noticed in particular, hanging back from the others, but whose expression was just as black, and whose presence made Kurt feel that sickening feeling flood through him once again.

Blaine's hand slid into his as naturally as a flower blooms and Kurt glanced at him, swallowing in fear, but feeling considerably calmer with his presence.

"Awww, look guys, the homos are here." One boy spat, his blonde hair hanging in front of his eyes moronically and his large frame causing him to stomp across the ground very ungracefully.

Two girls cackled to the left of him.

"I'd rather not look at it, to be honest." One of them spat, turning her steely gaze on them.

Blaine tried to step forward, but Kurt held him back, terror drumming in his heart as he tried not to think of the consequences that could derive from another angry outburst from his boyfriend.

"No," He told him softly, eyeing where Blaine's free hand had twitched towards his wand.

The other Slytherins howled with laughter, as Blaine returned an apologetic look to Kurt, this caused his jaw to clench slightly, and shoot daggers at them all.

"How pathetic! What's wrong, Anderson? Whipped now are you? We thought you may have been half cool when you decided to explode half of this wretched school – guess not."

"Don't be ridiculous, he could never be considered even a slightly decent wizard. Anyone would think he was a filthy mud-blood like his pet leech." A gangly dark haired boy with a crooked nose said nasally. He must have been punched in the nose at least a couple of times in the past and right now the two Gryffindors felt very much like adding another to his tally.

Blaine's hand tightened into a fist around Kurt's, without hurting him.  
>"Don't Blaine," The younger boy warned in a whisper. "I don't care. They can't say anything to us - Nothing that will matter."<p>

Kurt looked up to meet Karofsky's eyes and he returned a sour look. It was not quite so threatening and vicious as his fellow house-members, but it was enough to show Kurt that he was by no means about to prevent any actions that could follow – from whatever motivation; he was unsure – and it clearly displayed his negative reaction to seeing Kurt now, quite unlike the time when he had tried to speak to the countertenor by the Divination tower. He no longer looked apologetic and pleading, he looked cold and treacherous. His eyes were slightly red as Kurt looked into them, and after a moment the bully looked away, seemingly unable to hold his gaze.

Blaine did not fail to notice the exchange, but he was wrenched away from a perplexing array of feelings that came from such an observance, by seeing the large Blonde Slytherin take out his wand.

The red-haired Slytherin followed suit, as did the girl beside her and they stepped forwards, towards the two boys, who did not falter. Did not step back. They merely looked at one another, trying to calculate their next move in the small amount of time they had left to decide upon it.

"You're both disgusting," The Blonde boy hissed. "I hope you realise that."

There was no way they could win this: They were outnumbered. Magic couldn't help them now. So the younger resorted to the only offence he had left in his arsenal:

"Funny," Kurt snapped. "I always deemed cornering people in abandoned hallways disgusting cowardice, but then again belonging to your house, I suppose you're accustomed to such acts of weakness."

The Slytherin's faces all contorted as the remaining two boys drew their wands, Karofsky being the last to do so, copying the others.

The red-haired girl seethed, raising her wand in preparation; "You'll pay for that you mud blood. You filthy fa-"

"_Expelliarmus!"_

Kurt and Blaine whirled around to find Santana stood by their side, wand extended as all five of her fellow Slytherin's wands shot from their hands as she glared at them all, eyes blazing fire.

"Lopez! What the hell?" The boy with the repeatedly-broken nose screeched as he scrambled to collect his wand, but Kurt and Blaine quickly reached for their own defensively, standing alongside the sleek-black haired girl.

"You're one of us!" One of the girls said in horror as they all began to back away. Something about Santana… it seemed to strike the deepest fear into all of them. Even the large Blonde boy who was at least three times her size.

"I'd sooner be one of you, victimising these two, than I would go live in the Forbidden Forest." She said violently but bluntly. "Now go, if you know what is best for you."

They all exchanged wavering glances.

"We'll be back," Spat the red-haired girl at the two Gryffindors.

Santana stepped forward, wand directed between her eyes. "I'll be looking forward to it."

The girl swallowed and then turned to go with the rest of them, scarpering down the hall way as though the floor had turned to hot coals.

Well, all of them that is, bar one.

Karofsky seemed to be unable to move his feet as he stooped to pick up his wand, tucking it into a pocket of his robes slowly, but keeping his hand gripped tightly around it.

Kurt stared at him with the upmost curiosity as his face now depicted what could only be described as a deer-caught-in-headlights expression.

"Got something else to say?" Santana demanded venomously.

Karofsky did not look at her, he only stared at Kurt, who stared back, bewildered.

Blaine looked between the two of them, something heavy twisting in his stomach as he felt the tension rise between the two boys who held such a blooded history. He had not completely way-laid his paranoia from only a couple weeks back.

Santana did not understand the significance of all this and so faced up to Karofsky's looming figure.

"If you have something more to say to these two, then you better go ahead and whimper it out of that pathetic mouth of yours, because I would just be_ so _delighted to hear it. But let me warn you, if I don't happen to like what I hear you'll be looking at me jinxing whichever ball-sack you are less attached to. Now, I may not be an expert, but I get the impression that you guys are rather fond of both, so you best think of that before you decide. Yeah? Seriously, if you're just going to stand their gawping I will do it anyway, because these two don't want you anywhere near them, and neither do I for that matter. I don't want to see your stupid face anywhere close to me for a while. You won't want to know the consequences of you going against my wishes."

She stepped forward to his gormless expression. "Did you hear me you snivelling weasel?"

Karofsky's eyes finally turned towards her gradually, seeming slightly lost before his face took a sudden turn and twisted in anger as he let out a low grunt of frustration and turned to follow out from where the other Slytherin's had left.

Kurt remained staring after at him, deeply confused and wildly intrigued by what the hell that had been about.

He only noticed then that Blaine's hand was no longer in his.

Santana turned to them both, and they expected a triumphant glint in her eyes but instead her face was quite blank.

"You better go, in case they are stupid enough to return. And don't think I'll be doing you any more favours any time soon. I'm done with good deeds for a while now. Just go."

Kurt and Blaine both gave her a curious glance before they turned to go, puzzled as to why she had helped them, and even more so as to why she still looked so defeated, despite having claim to such a recent victory.

* * *

><p>The two boys walked silently to the library, without even realising that was where they had been heading.<p>

Kurt brushed his hand down the length of Blaine's arm, finding his fingers and pulling him out from some consuming thought.

"Thank you," The countertenor whispered dreamily.

"For what?" Blaine asked, looking across at him, feeling slightly dazed by the recent torrent of events.

Kurt smiled.

"For listening to me. For not doing anything stupid."

Blaine paused for a moment and then seemed to overcome some confliction in his mind as he broke into an easy grin, leaning over to rest his forehead lightly against Kurt's and taking his face intimately into his hands, whispering:

"Only you have the power to stop me doing so...I don't even know how... but you do."

* * *

><p>Finn sat outside of Quinn's room, having not been able to go in yet.<p>

Her parents hadn't shown, and they had heard no word from them. It seemed unlikely that they were going to attend at all and Finn tried not to allow his mind to dwell on this, in case it caused his anger to rise.

Right now he had to be there for Quinn, and getting mad never helped anything. Besides, he was mostly too nervous and concerned to be angry. He wanted to make sure she was okay. It seemed like such a huge ordeal to go through, especially alone. He understood why he had been asked to wait outside, but the time out here was agonising.

He tapped his foot and hummed slightly.

He stared at the ceiling, growing more and more impatient as the seconds ticked by on the clock as though the hands were being pulled back by strings to prevent their onwards pace.

Then the midwife poked her head around the door and smiled warmly at him; "You can come in now if you'd like?"

Finn got to his feet at once and followed the round faced, strawberry-blonde haired woman through the door.

Quinn lay on the hospital bed, hair a mess, cheeks still tinted a little red as her head was tilted back to stay at the ceiling as she lay there.

Finn walked slowly over to stand next to her.

"Hi," He said, with little knowledge as to what else he should say.

"Hi," She replied, turning her head to see him.

"How are you feeling?" He asked, pulling the stall closer to him and perching upon it as he moved a little closer to her side.

"Tired," She said sleepily, opening and closing her eyelids at a far slower pace than normal as she smiled dreamily.

The midwife chuckled a little, putting her robes back on over the scrubs she had been wearing for the delivery.

"Would you like to see your baby?" She enquired.

"Oh…umm…it's not mine," He told her a little abashed.

"Oh, sorry my mistake," She said, laughing lightly. "Are you her brother or…?"

"Just a friend," He said.

"A great friend," Quinn added affectionately and he grinned down at her as her eyes became heavier, trying to fight of the sleep.

"Would you still like to see her?" Asked the midwife.

Finn looked down at Quinn, the question in his eyes, unsure himself whether he could be trusted with a baby. He'd never even held a baby before, he wasn't even sure how. He supposed it was similar to when carrying a football…or a Quaffle.

Quinn nodded and the midwife went over to the side of the room and brought over the tiny pink bundle.

Finn's eyebrows raised into his hairline as he stared down at the tiny nose, tiny lips, and tiny feet and tiny toes that wriggled out from under the blankets and she gurgled.

The kind woman passed her over to him carefully, showing him how to hold her head properly.

The little warm body burrowed into him gently and he stared down at her in amazement. She took his breath away a little.

Then he looked up at Quinn; "She's beautiful."

Quinn looked up at him and then stared for a long while at the baby in his arms.

A tear rolled down her face as she looked away. "She is… but I can't keep her."

"Hey, you don't have to decide that now," Finn assured her.

She sighed and stared at the wall opposite as Finn handed the baby back to the midwife and sat next to her, taking her hand.

"Honestly, Quinn, take some time to think about it. You don't want to rush this."

She nodded simply and took a deep breath.

"I suppose you're right."

There was a knock at the door just then and the midwife frowned.

"Were you expecting any visitors?"

The pair looked at each other, confused, and simultaneously shook their heads.

The midwife crossed over to the door and pulled it open.

In stepped a tall white-blonde haired woman, which was back in a tight pony tail, wearing a light pink cardigan and a pencil skirt as though she were a 1950's housewife.

She looked anxiously around the room before allowing her eyes to settle on Quinn, who let go of Finn's hand immediately.

"Mum?" She breathed, hardly daring herself to believe it.

* * *

><p>Rachel stood outside the Slytherin common room. She didn't care too greatly for the location within the dungeons, nor did she like the expressions of the many Slytherin's who passed her by, often looking at her with sneers, knowing that she did not belong. Several of them asked what she was doing skulking around, but she evaded their questions and remained where she was.<p>

Finally, the boy she had been waiting for appeared.

Jesse's eyebrows raised in surprise as he turned the corner to find her standing where he had intended to go and rest after a long day of lessons. He frowned a little, wondering what she had to say to him after so many days of silence between the pair of them.

She wasted no time in making the intentions of her presence there clear.

"I made my choice." She said, looking deep into his eyes so that he could miss no connotations of the statement.

He stood stock still for a moment, as though something else flitted across his mind – a confliction?

Yet then he broke into a wide smile, took three long strides forward and scooped her up into his arms, hugging her tightly until she gave out a breathless laugh.

He returned her to the ground and planted a longing kiss on her lips.

"Thank you," He whispered. She thought it an odd response to her proclamation, but did not ask for an explanation to his gratitude as he pulled away and she noticed the dark shadows under his eyes.

Rachel traced her finger along them; "Have you not been sleeping well?"

Jesse seemed a little freaked by this observation on her part and his eyes flickered around the walls before settling back on her face, composure restored. "Not exactly."

"How come?" Rachel frowned, concerned by her newly-reunited boyfriend's physical signs of exhaustion.

He shook his head and put his finger underneath her chin.

"It doesn't matter now," He told her, leaning in to kiss her once more.

* * *

><p>Hello Readers!<p>

It's been a while since I've written an author's note, but don't think it is because I am any less thankful! As you may be able to tell by the depleting frequency of these updates, I have been rather busy as of late. But no fear, I'm still steadily getting chapters to you - it's not over yet!

Anyway, this chapter is long and filled with many different things, hopefully one of which shall appeal to you... I reckon I could guess which, but it would be rude to assume :P

Thank you all so so so so so so much for your kind words! Another reason for my belted updates is that I am working on a novel I have had going for many years now. It is very exciting and if anyone cares you can message me and I shall tell you about it :) Don't know if anyone is interested, but you never know, and I'd love to hear what people think of my idea!

Love you guys!

Thanks!


	27. Chapter 26: Warning

Chapter Twenty-Six: Warning

No songs in this one folks - no need to scurry off to youtube or ITunes :P

* * *

><p>"I'm just saying… It's a bit odd isn't it?" Kurt asked, staring over at the Slytherin table.<p>

It was dinner time in the Great Hall, and most of the Hogwarts students had already had their fill of food and were slowly departing from the Hall, wanting to go back to their dormitories or to escape outside for a moment before curfew commenced.

Blaine seemed to stiffen slightly beside him; "I hadn't really noticed."

Kurt shot him a sideways glance.

"You must have noticed… he's in all of our classes – or at least he _was. _I mean, where could he even be? How can he possibly get away with it after what happened last year?" Kurt puzzled, picking out the four faces of the other Slytherins that had cornered them a little while ago. The red-haired girl looked up at the same time, and then glanced at Santana before departing hurriedly with the rest of them.

Santana sat alone, scowling up at the ceiling, arms folded tightly, wrapped up in her own thoughts to which Kurt had no possible way of alluding to.

"Does it matter? I thought you wanted to forget about Karofsky, anyway?" Blaine said, taking a bite of chicken without really observing the taste.

Kurt scoffed; "I do."

Blaine looked at him and tried to smile softly. "Well then, let's not talk about him, yeah?"

Kurt wondered why Blaine was suddenly the one being so keen on avoiding the subject. It was very strange, considering that he had been so eager to discuss the matter previously. Karofsky had been missing for a couple of weeks now, in fact the scene where he and Blaine had been cornered was the last time he had seen the skulking Slytherin. Even though he hated the guy, he couldn't help but be curious. What could have provoked such a disappearance? Was there a legitimate reason why? Was it to do with him? Or them? Or what?

Kurt looked up to see Blaine staring at him with a furrowed brow and concerned eyes and Kurt decided it best not to push the matter.

"So… any plans for Halloween yet?" He said at random, trying to find any conversation that would give Blaine a more peaceable expression.

He did not succeed. In fact, Blaine's face fell while his golden-brown eyes widened. His eyebrows slanted upwards in the inner corners to display a look of discomfort.

"When is Halloween?" He asked quickly.

"…A week from today…" Kurt said, perplexed as to what had spooked him so. Surely Blaine was not frightened of a commercial holiday that only a few kids looked at in terror?

Blaine bit his lip and glanced across at the Ravenclaw table, which was more or less empty, definitely free of familiar faces. Then he looked across to Hufflepuff's.

Trent was sat beside Brittany, a change that they had only noticed in recent days, Brittany apparently not hanging out with her old group of friends now - Quinn was still out of school.

Finn had returned, of course, but he had told them that her mother had arrived and insisted that she not be forced to do the same until she was well-rested and perhaps until the general gossip and rumour about the Ravenclaw girl would have died down. This seemed like a wise decision, and besides – Quinn could do with some time off for herself.

Even so, that did not explain why Brittany was now attaching herself to Trent and not spending time with her usually-adjoined-by-the-hip best friend, Santana.

Kurt wondered if this separation had anything to do with Santana's currently miserable expression…

He decided it was probably not his place to pry, especially judging by the majority of the Slytherin's reactions to the feisty girl.

"What's wrong?" He enquired, raising an eyebrow as Blaine pursed his lips now.

He looked down at Kurt, smiled a little, but it turned into more of a grimace as he let his forehead fall into his hand.

"My friends…uh… like to plan something _special _for Halloween each year." He said, looking into Kurt's eyes so that he did not miss his meaning.

Kurt raised his head in understanding and glanced at Trent himself. "I see… Can we not avoid it?"

Blaine choked a laugh as he tried to stop himself doing so. "Ah…No Kurt, I sincerely doubt that would be at all possible."

Kurt laughed and took a sip of Pumpkin Juice, looking over the brim at his charmingly disgruntled boyfriend.

"Will it really be that bad?"

"Yes."

Kurt tilted his head to one side, and Blaine couldn't help but notice again how endearing he looked when he did so, staring at the ceiling thoughtfully.

"How bad?"

Blaine took a deep breath; "Kurt, if I could fathom how bad myself, I would tell you, but not even I have that power."

Kurt chuckled and nudged him playfully with his elbow.

"Maybe it will be fun?" He suggested, trying to put a positive spin on it.

Blaine shook his head as he raised it from his hand, looking up at Kurt adoringly.

"If they try anything funny… well, at least I know that if they try _do_ anything it will be to target me and not you."

He seemed satisfied by this small comfort.

Then Kurt ruined it.

"Surely though, they'd know that targeting me would effect you more?" He added unthinkingly.

Blaine looked slightly alarmed.

"But I'm sure they won't - maybe they'll have forgotten completely?"

Blaine rested his hand on Kurt's shoulder and raised his eyebrows at him. "On Halloween? Those boys will forget nothing."

Kurt rested his cheek lightly on the older boy's hand and Blaine raised his thumb to stroke his skin lovingly.

They stayed like that for a short moment.

"Weren't you going to go visit Hagrid?" Blaine asked in a quiet voice.

Kurt arched his eyebrow; "Trying to get rid of me?"

Blaine smiled slowly.

"Not even a little bit; I would keep you here forever if I could," They were both alone in the hall now, "But I know you'd be upset with yourself if you let Hagrid down, and I don't wish to be selfish."

Kurt leaned in to cuddle into Blaine's chest as the older Gryffindor wrapped his arms around him and kissed the top of his head.

"Maybe just two more minutes…"

* * *

><p>Blaine climbed the stairs to their dormitory, thoughts still far away and resting within the vicinity of Kurt's embrace. He smiled to himself as he jumped up the stone steps two at a time.<br>He had been allowing himself to let in those doubts again that he had felt mere weeks ago, but it was hard to sustain such worrisome thoughts when somebody so immaculate could look at him with eyes so gorgeous.

He pushed open the door to their room, an expression of happiness still lurking upon his lips as he hummed a cheerful melody.

Finn turned around when he saw Blaine entering and smiled briefly.

"Hey," Blaine said, closing the door behind him, "How are you?"

Finn shrugged, in all honesty he had been very quiet ever since returning from the hospital, and his countenance had only worsened once he learnt that Jesse and Rachel had reconciled. In fact, one could say he'd been in a foul mood ever since the knowledge met his ears - all though he never lashed out at them; he was clearly grumpy and generally uncommunicative. Kurt had expressed his concerns on the matter to Blaine, but Blaine had been at a loss of what to say which would help the situation or put Finn's step-brother at ease. He would do anything to achieve such a goal, after all.

"Where's Kurt?" Finn asked, folding his robes onto his chair, having already changed into his casual clothes for the evening.

"He went to see Hagrid," Blaine told him, sitting down cross-legged on his bed and opening up the Muggle Studies book he had sitting waiting for him there.

"Ah…" Finn said, looking slightly uncomfortable for some reason as he glanced at Blaine, who decided it might be time to set aside his reading for now.

"I think we need to talk…" Finn said.

"Are you breaking up with me?" Blaine gasped, eyebrow raised in kidding, hoping that Finn would catch onto his humour.

He smiled a little, but not entirely; "No, I mean it."

"…Okay?" Blaine said, not knowing what else to say or what to make of his declaration. "Shoot."

"I don't want to get all serious and that, or too dramatic – I'm no good at that stuff anyway," Finn confessed, walking forwards a bit to sit on the end of his own bed, just a foot apart from where Blaine was situated. "But I kind of wanted to speak to you a bit… about Kurt."

Blaine shuffled and rearranged himself to face Finn, eyes wide with fascination; "Go on."

Finn averted his eyes, suddenly very interested in the floor.

"Well, I get that you guys are kinda like dating now… which is cool, don't get me wrong - I like that Kurt found someone, and I know stuff between us hasn't always been perfect…"

Kurt had not neglected to inform Blaine about the time in his basement when his father had walked in on the two boys after Finn had used an unpleasant and offensive term. It was not a topic of conversation brought up deliberately, it just managed to fall into it by accident, and Blaine did not really judge Finn for it, since Kurt justified the context as soon as he spoke of it.

The older Gryffindor did not say anything, however, and merely allowed Finn to continue.

"…But I do really care about him… he's my brother, and I think that much is obvious… he's been through a lot of stuff lately, and I have known you a while from the team and all… and I mean, I think that I know you're a good guy, but I don't want to risk that kind of assumption... because if Kurt gets hurt then that won't sit well with me."

Finn fixed his eyes on Blaine's own now, and the Chaser knew he was treading on some very dangerous ground now. He had a feeling that Finn may have been wishing to speak to him about this for some time, but other events and lack of time the two boys spent alone together had prevented it from being so.

"I understand that, Finn," Blaine told him in earnest, "And I really wouldn't expect any less; I think it is great that the two of you are so close. But you needn't worry as I have no intention of hurting Kurt… he means the world to me."

Finn stared at Blaine for a moment, as if trying to assess whether or not he was speaking the truth. He seemed to qualify that he was.

"Good, I mean, he should do, yeah. But sometimes people get hurt by others, even if that person doesn't do it intentionally. And I really hope that doesn't happen here."

Blaine took a deep breath and rubbed the bridge of his nose a little. "I don't think I want that any more than you do, Finn, if I did something to upset or betray Kurt's trust in me… or yours for that matter… Well, I can't think of anything worse."

"I just want to let you know that, even though we're teammates and everything, that if you do anything to him… well, things are going to change, and I am going to stick by him, and I won't hesitate to defend him any way I feel necessary… I just thought I'd let you know."

Blaine tried not to find Finn's flustered threats too amusing as he kept a straight face, realising the serious intention behind the stumbled words; "I accept that. Completely."

The two Gryffindors stared at one another for a long moment, not breaking the others gaze as they attempted to understand one another.

"You really care about him a lot, don't you?" Finn asked in a quiet voice, scrutinising Blaine intensely.

The vocalist nodded, the small smile returning to his face, "More than I thought possible."

Finn sighed then; "I wish that I could trust that, I mean, I can tell you're telling the truth now, but I don't know that it will last… because sometimes you think people are truly caring and won't let you down but they go ahead and do it anyway…"

Blaine raised one eyebrow, having a feeling that this conversation's topic was not so completely inclusive to him any longer.

"Have you talked to Rachel recently…?" He asked, hoping that he was not over stepping and Finn's eyes snapped up to him.

He looked like he might have been angry with Blaine for a second, but then he merely grimaced and puffed his cheeks out a little in exasperation; "She's avoiding me like the plague."

Blaine nodded thoughtfully.

"That's not what this is about," He said abruptly. "I mean it, about Kurt and everything."

Blaine held up a hand to calm him; "I know, I know, just that last part I thought… thought that it may have been a little bit related to your current predicament."

Finn paused and frowned, looking determinedly at his knuckles.

"Not like it makes much difference," He grumbled, "If anything she stopped talking to me once she and that asshole broke up, now they're back together there hasn't really been a lot of difference."

"Apart from having to see them together," Blaine noted.

Finn gave a disgusted expression and Blaine chuckled a bit, causing a faint smile to trace across the Keeper's lips.

"They don't half like to rub it in, do they?" He said scornfully.

Jesse and Rachel certainly hadn't been opposed to displaying their affectionate rekindling of a relationship ever since they had got back together, it was sure to be said.

"He is an asshole," Blaine agreed, "If only because he beat us at Quidditch… All though that was kind of my fault."

Finn grinned at him, obviously quite pleased that they both shared a mutual hatred for the Slytherin Seeker. "That wasn't really your fault, though; if the teachers had known what had gone on they may not have even counted the match result at all."

"Yes, well, you try telling Kurt that as a valid reasoning," Blaine said, shaking his head at the stubborn countertenor even though he was not currently present.

Finn rolled his eyes, "One day he will listen to me about these things."

"I wouldn't bet on it," Blaine said with a slightly disheartened smile – it seemed that no matter who said it or what it was they said, Kurt would never give in on the Karofsky issue, and he couldn't help but wonder exactly why that was…

Even so, Blaine was not in the mood to dwell on such issues and he expelled the thoughts from his mind.

Blaine eased back on his bed a little, slightly more relaxed now that his interrogation seemed to have ceased, and instead he turned the tables around:

"So, what are you going to do about it?"

"About what?" Finn said, jerking his head upwards, apparently he had been lost in his own train of thought.

"Rachel."

"Oh her… Nothing, I guess. I've tried everything." He shrugged and leant his head against the bedpost.

"Everything?" Blaine curved one eyebrow sarcastically, "Impressive."

"Okay, not everything, but enough. Kurt said that singing would be the one way to get a girl like Rachel to fall for me, and that crashed and burned, so I'm running out of better ideas."

Blaine mulled this over, trying not to linger on the intelligence of Kurt's deduction skills – not that the information surprised him – and to consider these words.

"Well," He said slowly, eyes searching the ceiling as he pondered, "… Technically, you got the theory correct in how to win her over, but perhaps the execution was a little off."

Finn seemed a little down-trodden by this evaluation, "How do you mean?"

Blaine smiled kindly at him, "Sorry, I don't mean that to sound critical, it's just that maybe singing an in-your-face loud song in the middle of the hallway - in front of everyone… including her boyfriend, was not taken as the most… romantic of gestures."

"I thought I just had to make a grand gesture… now I have to be romantic as well?" Finn did not seem quite so thrilled by the prospect.

Blaine sat forward, cupping one hand beneath his chin.

"Finn, what common interest do you know of that both Kurt and Rachel share, that probably sparked the idea for the whole charade in his head in the first place?"

"Being the centre of attention?" He hazarded a guess.

Blaine grinned, "Well, yes, but asides from that."

"Err…." Finn deliberated, "Broadway musicals?"

"Exactly!" Blaine exclaimed, "And in nearly every one of those the characters sing songs that are meaningful and heartfelt to the ones they love, and they are often things that are truly connected to the way they are feeling."

Finn looked at him dubiously, his knowledge of Broadway being very limited, "But… it was how I was feeling. It kind of outlined the situation. Plus, I thought Broadway was about making a big show of things? Being in your face and that."

"Generally speaking, but often the more tender songs are sung in solace and are more emotional and less rock and roll," Blaine laughed. "Not that I didn't enjoy your performance – in fact, it was excellent – but perhaps it wasn't the best way to go if you want a girl to fall in love with you, especially regarding the time and the place."

"So… I have to sing her something romantic…alone?"

Blaine put up his hands in an unknowing gesture.

"I can't say for sure that it will work, of course, but yes, that would be my suggestion, whether you adhere to it or not is your choice entirely."

Finn bit his lip, "Would that not be terribly embarrassing and kind of… laying myself bare a bit?"

Blaine clapped a hand on Finn's shoulder, "That, my friend, is kind of the point."

Finn seemed to pout a little, not warming to the idea and struggling to find good reasons to prevent it from sounding like a good plan.

"I… I don't really do romantic very well…" Finn said in a low voice.

"I'm sure that you do, Finn, I have complete faith in you." Blaine said, smiling in encouragement.

"I don't… Hey, why don't you pick a song for me?"

Blaine leant back and smirked a little; "I can't, it has to come from you, else it won't mean anything. But don't worry, I am sure you'll pick something great."

"I doubt it…"

Blaine chuckled lightly and stretched his arms out to the sides. "Like I said, it's only a suggestion, you can choose to ignore me all you like, I don't really have any more idea about all this stuff than you do; I just blindly guessed myself through it all and ended up being incredibly lucky."

Finn's face seemed to turn serious once more as he fixed Blaine with a firm expression and opened his mouth to emit something that Blaine was sure would be most sincere.

However, at that moment the door swung open and Kurt walked onto the threshold and all other thoughts evaporated from his mind.

"Hello," Blaine said, swinging his legs round so that he could stand up to kiss his boyfriend on the cheek in greeting.

"Hagrid tried to buy a Kelpie from a man in The Hog's Head - wanted to raise in in The Lake - thankfully he didn't have anything good to trade with, and I managed to convince him it was a terrible idea since Dumbledore would not have been pleased. He seems to have been persuaded not to search around for something to exchange with this stranger," Kurt sighed, looking a little agitated, as though this discussion had taken a lot out of him in dealing with the ludicrous monster-loving gameskeeper.

"I love Hagrid, but he doesn't half drive me crazy at times…" Kurt muttered. He leant his head against Blaine's own, closing his eyes and listening to the sound of the vocalist's breathing. "Anyway, I am exhausted, so I think I shall call it an early night."

He took Blaine's hands briefly in his own and gave him a swift, soft kiss on the lips that still sent a flutter of pleasure down the older boy's core.

Then he let go and crossed over to his bed.

Finn had not moved and fixed his eyes back on Blaine, who had walked over to his own bedside table to get ready himself.

He looked up to find the Gryffindor Keeper, still staring at him, and Finn glanced behind him to where Kurt had his back to them.  
>"What I said before, I still mean it all." He whispered, looking at Kurt once more so that there could be no confusion about what it was he was referring to.<p>

Blaine nodded. "I know."

Kurt looked up, "What are you two conspiring about now?"

"Nothing." The two Quidditch players said in unison.

* * *

><p>Wes tapped his foot impatiently as he waited, leaning against the window frame to the Clock Tower, watching the view outside.<p>

It was the evening of the 31th of October, 10:50pm where curfew was about to end and the last few students were filing back towards their common rooms, none of them seeing the Ravenclaw boy, who was tucked behind the pillar to hide himself from view unless anyone noticed that he was not tagging along with his peers in the intention of returning for a peaceful night's sleep.

He and his friends had other plans for this Halloween. The feast that evening had been all well and good, but no one celebrated this particular holiday like they did.

First things first, however: certain arrangements had to be put in place to make sure that everything ran smoothly.

David was working on rallying their victims for the night's proceedings, whereas he had another task at hand.

Just then he heard whispered voices from the stairs and he stood upright, having not expected such a sound.

That was because the person who he had been waiting for had arrived, but he had not come alone.

Following Trent up the steps was a tall blonde girl, one that Wes had seen around a few times, since she also came from Hufflepuff house.

"What are you doing?" He asked suddenly, taking a couple steps towards the pair. "I said to come on your own!"

Wes pouted, not liking the fact that he had not been informed of the new addition to his party.

Trent just smiled; "Come on, Brittany's cool, I was hoping she would be able to help us out tonight."

"But now we don't have an even number, and it'll throw everything off-balance," Wes sulked, folding his arms and tutting at the clueless Hufflepuff boy.

"Oh yeah… I hadn't thought of that… Well, we're just supervising anyway - Brittany can help us out. Like a threesome" Trent suggested.

Brittany shrugged, "I have those all the time, anyway."

Wes arched an eyebrow at the comment, not sure whether or not she was being serious.

Then he shook his head; "But the whole point of it is to use it as an excuse that only two of us are needed so that David can carry out his plans for the evening."

"Oh yeah… Sorry - We'll figure something out… But what exactly are we doing here, now?" Trent asked.

"We," Wes wriggled his eyebrows at his now duo companionship, too exhilarated by the night's prospects to care too much about the blonde girl's disruption. "Are taking care of the pest control problem at this school."

"When I was little, I always wanted to be an exterminator. It happened after I watched an episode of Doctor Who." Brittany contributed airily to the conversation.

Trent frowned; "If you mean who I think you mean… how?"

Wes grinned, as if he had been waiting for his friend to ask this question – which he had been, of course.

"Oh don't worry," He assured them, "I have found us some… much-needed assistance."

Wes whistled through his fingers as a figure floated in from outside of the Clock Tower.

A figure with a translucent body and a wicked smile playing around his lips.

Peeves the Poltergeist cackled and swooped round the air in a circle, clapping his hands together in excitement, just as the clock struck to initiate the end of Hogwarts' curfew.

* * *

><p>Hello Readers!<p>

I know, I know, I am ashamed at myself for having taken so long to update!

I have been very busy with work and saying farewell to all of my friends who have already left for university. Plus getting myself ready - seriously, I have spent a fortune on so much stuff and I can hardly think what I have spent it on :( why is education so damn expensive? Anyway, I could rant about this, but I won't! All I can do is apologise for being such a shitty author and not updating, I also know that this chapter is not particularly action packed, but it has some sweet moments in, and the Blain/Finn moment that RIB seem determined to deprive us of on the show. Piss off Finn, Blaine didn't blow up the piano, and it's his first day :( I prefer my Finn to be honest :L

Oh yes, Wes is up to no good, and he has his new chum - this is my tribute to Peeves seeing as he was so cruelly shunned from the film productions. Seriously, in my book you don't chase Umbridge with a stick and not get featured - outrageous. It's almost as bad as when they left out Ginny's Valentine's Dwarf.

His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad

His hair is as black as a blackboard

I wish he was mine, he's really divine

The hero who conquered the dark lord.

One day, someone will send me something so romantic, until that day, I shall live vicariously through fictional relationships - wheeeeey!

Next chapter is full of fun (and not fun) is not fun a term? I guess we'll call it angst. Yeah, it's angst. Or more, it will set off some angst for the chapter afterwards. Yay. Sorry guys, you didn't think it was over did you? I mean we're on Halloween, we still have Christmas to adhere to, not to mention Valentines. Shit will hit the fan. I don't know why I use that expression, it always slightly disgusts me...

Has this author's note been too long? I bet I have made grammar and spelling errors as I haven't bothered to read it over, but I feel as though I haven't left one in a while, and so I want to say this:

I LOVE YOU SO MUCH AND KEEP REVIEWING AND READ HARRY POTTER ALL DAY AND WATCH THE NEW SERIES OF GLEE EVEN IF RIB DECIDE TO SCREW WITH CONTINUITY AND MESS WITH KLAINE.

Seriously, writers, if you keep at this, you will be receiving an angry email. The last episode was possibly the sweetest thing ever, but these new rumours... (if you've heard them, you'll know what I mean) I am angry. LIVID.

QUIT BLOWING HOLES IN MY SHIP!

POTC has a situation-appropriate quote for everything.

Really will stop now, thanks again my lovely Klainers and Potterheads and Gleeks and a few of you Starkids out there :) 3


	28. Chapter 27: Trick or Treat?

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Trick or Treat?

(Songs: Mayday Parade – Miserable At Best)

* * *

><p>"PEEVES!" Yelled Filch as the Poltergeist cackled hideously and swooped down through the tower's steps.<p>

It was not currently possible to see Filch, since he was presently locked inside a suit of armour, which the Poltergeist had managed to encase him inside of. It rattled furiously as the caretaker attempted to pummel his confines.

"Silencio," Wes said triumphantly, directing his wand towards the metal man, who proceeded to quieten so that only a soft shaking was visible.

"Do you think he saw us?" Trent whispered nervously, glancing towards the steel prison.

"Nahhh," Wes grinned, "And he isn't intelligent enough to figure it out, either."

Peeves flew down to meet them, holding out his hand for Wes to high five. The Ravenclaw did so gleefully, laughing at their victory.

"Nice work, Peeves, I owe you one."

"He could stay there for days and nobody would notice," Peeves said with a manic smile that touched the tips of his ears.

Wes chuckled, "Well, as tempting as that sounds to have him away for that long, we'll probably let him out in a few hours, once we're done. Because we're kind like that."

"Have it your way," Peeves sighed, sounding disappointed. "I'll keep watch for you all tonight. Bye ickle students!"

"Thanks man," Wes said as the Poltergeist winked at him and soared out of the open window into the night.

Trent stared after him; "How… How do you manage to control him?"

Wes shrugged, smiling contently at where Peeves had just exited; "We share similar interests, most of them to do with torturing Filch and harassing younger students… and teachers."

"I always thought the Bloody Baron was the only one he listened to…" Trent said.

"Please, I am much better looking than the Baron, for starters, and my charisma is far more appealing. Now, where's the cat?"

"Oh shit, I forgot about her!" Trent exclaimed suddenly, whipping his head round.

When he did so however, his mouth fell open a little, he tugged on Wes' elbow, who turned around, soon displaying an equal look of surprise.

Brittany stood behind them, cuddling Mrs Norris to her warmly; the cat shut her eyes peacefully and mewed, purring audibly.

"An obedient Peeves and a friendly Mrs Norris…I think I need to sit down." Trent said.

Wes just beamed, "Excellent! What do we do with her?"

"I'm going to go introduce her to Lord Tubbington," Brittany said, an excited smile on her face.

"Aren't you going to stay for the games to begin?"

"No, Lord Tubbington gets lonely if I leave him too long at night, besides I don't trust him in my room alone – who knows what he could steal or break into. You have the wrong number of people anyway, and this way I can plan my new episode of Fondue for Two."

"Fondue for who?" Trent asked.

"For two. One. Two." Brittany said. "God, Trent, it's just maths, doesn't take a genius to work that out."

And with that she carried Mrs Norris back towards the kitchens where the Hufflepuff common room was situated.

Wes raised an eyebrow as she left, "You sure know how to pick the odd ones."

"Says you," Trent said defensively, "at least I don't make friends with dead lunatics."

Wes ignored him, grinned and clapped his hands, rubbing them together in anticipation. Trent eyed his friend, a little cautious of the mischievous glint in his eyes as he looked out at the now empty and still castle.

"Now, here's where the fun really begins."

* * *

><p>"Levicorpus!"<p>

David's spell was met by three simultaneous yelps, as the Gryffindor boys were suddenly all held upside down in their pyjamas.

"What the hell?" Finn yelled, twisting to catch a look at the Ravenclaw intruder, "How did you get in here?"

"You ought to tell Blaine to quit scribbling the Fat Lady's password on the inside of his Charms textbook - it's not exactly difficult to discover."

"You ought to stop riffling through my things!" Blaine fumed as he too tried to wriggle out of the awkward position, forcing his top down so that it didn't fall over his ears.

Kurt demanded that they be let go instantly, fixing David with a venomous stare and the older boy eventually complied, allowing them all to fall on their beds.

Finn staggered upwards, rubbing the back of his neck and grumbling darkly, several profanities affiliated with David slipping into his monologue.

The Ravenclaw simply smiled and smirked at Kurt and Blaine, "I'm a little disappointed actually; I thought I'd catch you two in the same bed."

Kurt's face turned flame red in a split second and Blaine scowled, folding his arms – he did not like to be rudely awakened from his sleep, hair ruffled into casual curls that stuck out at odd angles. Kurt's was also quite apart from its usually refined state. Finn's didn't really look any different, and David suspected his hair care routine was far less disciplined.

"What are we doing?" The tallest boy muttered, trying to keep his eyes open, as they were still heavy from his recent slumber.

"It's Halloween, my friends, and that is always a cause to celebrate. Kurt?"

The countertenor seemed to have gotten over his sudden embarrassment quite quickly, and now stood, arms folded, glaring at the 7th Year for his disturbance. "What?" He retorted.

David looked at him with a sickly sweet smile, "Would you be a dear and go to wake the girls, I would go myself, but I feel as though it would be… inappropriate."

"Why should I?" Demanded the younger boy, equally as grumpy as his boyfriend it seemed.

"Because if you don't I shall hang you upside down again, also because we want to get things underway and I am pretty sure that you are just a tiny weeny bit curious. Especially as I am certain that Blaine has mentioned a few things to you." David winked at the other older boy, but he did not return such joviality.

This did not seem to dampen David's spirits, however.

Kurt sighed heavily and rolled his eyes.

"All I can say is that this better be good," he said, walking up to the confident boy with an unimpressed expression scrawled across his face; "or you will regret messing with my rem patterns."

He left the room to go and wake Rachel and Mercedes.

David smiled warmly at the other two, who remained fixed in their resentment.

He beckoned them down to the common room and they followed, still slightly reluctant, but knowing that there was little point in rebelling against this now.

"What the hell was that spell, anyway?" Blaine asked as they made their way down the marble steps.

David shrugged. "I spotted it in an old Potions text book a few weeks back when Snape asked me to clear out the cupboard - punishment after I blew up my cauldron. I don't think he saw me looking at it, but I thought I'd try it out. Worked pretty well."

"You're insane," Finn told him bluntly.

"Quite possibly," David chirped merrily as the three boys stood and waited for the other half of their party, ready to proceed down to where Wes and Trent would now be waiting for them all.

* * *

><p>Wes paced the length of the High Table (which he took full advantage of the opportunity to stand upon, since he would never be allowed to do so under normal circumstances) on the platform above them all, hands clasped behind his back and a bounce in his step.<p>

"Now, the rules are simple," He said, brandishing his hand in a flurry of movement as his fellows stood on the floor as usual and looked up at him, wearing expressions of confusion and slight concern; "You shall all be divided into pairs and separated around the castle. The aim of the game is to find your partner, who will be located somewhere within the castle, unbeknownst to yourselves. Of course, finding each other will by no means be an easy task, since Trent and myself shall be supervising your attempts in doing so, and we have put in place certain…obstacles to prevent you from reaching one another. Halloween themed, obviously."

"Wait, why is David not helping you out?" Blaine asked, glancing at the other Ravenclaw suspiciously, who stood amongst the other two but was apparently on a level with the rest of them as far as the game was concerned.

"Because then there would be an odd number, silly, so David has kindly volunteered to equal out the field," Wes said smoothly, thankful that the Brittany situation had not disrupted their plotting, even if he felt slightly bad for excluding her. Maybe he would find a way of making it up to her in future, but right now there were bigger fish to fry; "Anyway, where was I? Oh yes: Once you have found your partner you should report back here and wait. The last couple back will have to undergo our own specifically designed punishment."

He grinned wickedly and the others exchanged worrisome glances.

"Who are the couples?" Finn asked, glancing around the row of people.

"Ah yes," Wes exclaimed, twirling his wand theatrically and taking long dancing strides across the table now.

He reached the right side where Kurt and Blaine stood and bent low towards them.

"We figured you two would throw hissy fits if we didn't pair you together, but no sneaking off into abandoned classrooms – Halloween is a children's festivity, after all."

"Must be why you like it so much," Blaine smirked and Wes snickered and straightened up to walk again.

"David and Mercedes," He said casually. The diva Gryffindor glanced over at her partner, feeling a little anxious – did Wes know what David had said to her before? She considered it likely. She had not responded to his question yet, having made sure the two of them had not been left alone together since, even in the long time it had been since he had asked. Well, this was going to be awkward…

"Which leaves Rachel and Finn."

Rachel flushed, but she did not say a word and allowed her hair to fall across the side of her face, so that it was obscured from Finn's vision. He, on the other hand, looked secretly pleased, a small smile pulling at the corners of his mouth. He glanced across at Blaine, who gave him the tiniest of thumbs up and then looked up at Wes, who winked at him.

So much scheming – he was in his element.

Kurt stood with his arms folded, in a slight mood since he had not been permitted to change out of his nightwear and had only just been able to grab his navy blue dressing gown; "And what if we refuse to play?"

Wes beamed ever wider, pointing to the ceiling; "Then you get strung up to the chandelier peg up there until morning."

They all jerked their heads up and saw the empty latch to their right, and then they looked to the floor where the shards of the great fixture lay scattered.

They looked back at him curiously.

"When did that happen?" Mercedes asked.

Wes looked shiftily sideways; "Err… earlier, when we were taking care of…preparations."  
>"Pest control," Trent clarified, all though none of the others remained any the wiser to what that meant.<p>

The others all exchanged looks, unsure whether or not to take this threatened punishment as legitimate or not. On the one hand, it seemed extreme, on the other; this was Wes, Trent and David they were dealing with…

"Any other questions?" Wes asked them while they were still mulling over the confliction, but before they could answer him he said; "Good. Let's get ready to rumble!"

* * *

><p>Mercedes walked cautiously through the halls, drumming her wand on the inside of her palm, eyes flickering in all directions.<p>

She had known the three boys long enough by now to know that whatever they had in store for them all would not be anything to allow you to let your guard down.

She neared the moving staircases, wondering if David would be on one of the higher floors.

In all honesty, she wasn't completely overjoyed with finding David, on her own, in the middle of the castle. Not that she disliked him - not at all - but things were… difficult.

She sighed, she knew she was being silly about it all, but she had her reasons. In any case, her own personal issues were probably not worth whatever punishment Wes and Trent had conjured up, so she decided it would probably be better if she found the Ravenclaw boy.

She went across to the first marble staircase, but as she looked up a very unexpected sight met her eyes.

A giant orange mass was hurtling down from the top of the steps. A massive Pumpkin was rocketing towards her, rolling down the banisters at a quickening pace, ready to slam into her unless she turned around and ran for her life.

And this she did, sprinting down the corridor full belt as the huge vegetable followed her in hot pursuit, making a loud grumble of noise as it rolled.

She barely had time to think of what to do however, before a body hurled itself towards her, out of nowhere, taking her by the arm and pulling her into an empty classroom.

The two Hogwarts students flew inside; allowing the Pumpkin to continue in the direction it could not stray from, and pass them down the hallway.

Mercedes watched as it rolled away and then turned her head to look back inside the darkened classroom.

"Lumos," Her rescuer whispered.

David grinned at her widely.

"I guess I found you."

* * *

><p>Blaine walked through the halls hurriedly, turning this way and that. As if Hogwarts wasn't bad enough as it is, tonight it felt like an even more complex maze of confusion than it usually did.<p>

Most likely panic had something to do with the fact that he was in a rush to find Kurt as soon as possible. He loved his friends, but he did not put it past them to do something unbelievably foolish. He doubted they would cause any of them any real harm, but he couldn't help feeling on edge and besides, it wasn't only their pranks that had him worried – there was something generally spooky about the castle at night and he still maintained that Kurt was incredibly dangerous-incident prone… especially in recent times.

Also, it wasn't as though he was completely superstitious or anything, but Halloween gave him the creeps.

He raised his lit wand above him as he walked through the darkened halls, footsteps echoing delicately around the stone surfaces.

What if a teacher found them? What if Filch did – Blaine found it awfully peculiar that the caretaker had not discovered them already come to think of it…

The thought made his heart quicken along with his feet, not wanting this to get Kurt into trouble either.

He sighed, generally he just felt safer when the younger Gryffindor was by his side, and knowing that he was somewhere unknown within Hogwarts, without him… the thought simply made him uneasy.

He did not have the time to dwell on the thought, however, as he heard a quiet screeching noise behind him.

He whirled around just in time to see several black winged creatures attack him.

The magically conjured bats swarmed towards him and he managed to brace both arms over his face just in time.

This was lucky, considering these animals had no qualms about fiercely biting his skin, and he yelped a few times as their teeth nipped him.

He tried to run down the corridor, to free himself from them, but it was to no avail.

He wrestled with them for a while as they each swooped down in turn, bite after bite connecting with flesh and then he managed to free his arm for a split second to yell:

"_Stupefy! Stupefy! Stupefy!"_

The bats fell unconscious to the ground and Blaine panted, taking one of his wounded arms to place a hand over his chest.

He stared down at them in annoyance, seeing the countless red marks. They were not particularly deep, these bats being hardly larger than a golf ball, but they still stung and left tiny red gashes in his skin.

"Wes!" He called out into the seemingly abandoned corridor, "I swear to God, if you can hear me! That was not funny; that bloody hurt!"

If he was not mistaken, he thought he could hear a faint snickering, but could not for the life of him work out which direction it had come from.

Blaine scowled, rubbing his tiny wounds and continuing onwards.

* * *

><p>Rachel let out a small scream as a black ribbon shot out from the end of the corridor and wrapped itself around her eyes, obscuring her vision so that she was plunged into even greater darkness than was already about the castle.<p>

She tugged at the blindfold but it was futile; it was tightly knotted.

She wrestled with it furiously, in the middle of the empty space she was held at alone.

She had walked for so long, she barely remembered where she was anymore, and this new visual impairment was not helping her at all.

"Guys! Get it off!" She attempted, but no answer came and she sighed, still trying to grapple with it and feeling slightly panicked now. She didn't feel wholly comfortable as it was, and now her heart thudded faster as she became slowly paranoid of the slightest noise around her. The whole place was eerie and foreboding and she was not enjoying herself one bit – she wanted to escape this madness, and she continued to pull and wrench at the ribbon, desperate to be freed and feeling sweat rise on her forehead from the strain of it all.

_Rachel, don't cry, I know_

The Brunette Gryffindor's head snapped to attention now, hands still clenched around the material covering her eyes, but her focus now on the line of a song she recognised, even if the first word of the lyric had been altered.

_You're trying your hardest_

_And the hardest part is letting go_

_Of the nights we shared_

Before she knew what she was doing, she began to stagger towards the voice, because she knew who it was, that it would lead her to the end of this game, but also because the gentle rhythm and sound of it made her feel safe, and her feet led her forwards, pulling her towards it.

_Ocala is calling_

_And you know it's haunting but compared to your eyes_

_Nothing shines quite as bright_

_And when we look to the sky_

_It's not mine, but I want it so…_

Rachel found her way stumbling, arms outstretched in front of her, voice calling her forward, to a great oak door, she pressed her hands against it and it gave way and opened slowly, allowing her entrance so that the voice rung out now with sharper clarity.

_Let's not pretend like you're along tonight_

_I know he's there and_

_You're probably hanging out and making eyes_

_While across the room he stares_

_I'll bet he gets the nerve to walk the floor and ask my girl to dance…_

_She'll say yes…_

The blindfold fell down from around her eyes, like Devil's Snare when it releases its prisoner once they have stopped fighting. Because Rachel could not be in any state of stress while that voice washed over her.

_Because these words were never easier for me to say or her to second guess_

_But I guess…_

It was only then that she realised she was back in the Great Hall, and that Finn stood up at the top, by the High Table, looking down at her as he sang.

_That I can live without you but…_

_Without you I'll be miserable at best._

_You're all that I hoped to find_

_In every single way_

_And everything I could give_

_Is everything you couldn't take_

_Cos nothing feels like home_

_You're a thousand miles away_

_And the hardest part of living is just taking breaths to stay_

_Cause I know I'm good for something I just haven't found it yet_

_But I need it…_

_So…_

Rachel stood dumbfounded, in awe of the sight she was seeing, as Finn stepped forward, pain struck on his face slightly as he looked at her and she could feel the emotion bursting from him.

_Let's not pretend like you're along tonight_

_I know he's there and_

_You're probably hanging out and making eyes_

_While across the room he stares_

_I bet he gets the nerve to walk the floor and ask my girl to dance_

_She'll say yes_

_Because these words were never easier for me to say or her to second guess_

_But I guess_

_That I can live without you but_

_Without you I'll be miserable at best_

He walked down slowly, through the aisle between where the House Tables were, towards where she stood. She could hardly breath as she watched, transfixed.

_And this'll be the first time in a week_

_That I'll talk to you and I can't speak_

_It's been three whole days since I've had sleep_

He looked at her in all seriousness so that she knew the lyrics of his song were true as he drew closer.

_Cos I dream of his lips on your cheek_

_And I get the point that I should leave you alone_

_But we both know that I'm not that strong and_

_I miss the lips that made me fly…_

_So…_

He finally reached her and took Rachel's hands in his own, the warm touch flushing through her as he stared into her eyes.

_Let's not pretend like you're alone tonight_

_I know he's there and_

_You're probably hanging out and making eyes_

_While across the room he stares_

_I bet he gets the nerve to walk the floor and ask my girl to dance…_

_She'll say yes…_

_Because these words were never easier for me to say or her to second guess_

_But I guess_

Before Rachel could control her mouth it began to sing along with him, fitting in with his voice in perfect harmony.

_That I can live without you but_

_Without I'll be miserable…_

_And I can live without you but…_

_Without you I'll be miserable_

_And I can live without you but…_

_Oh! Without you I'll be miserable at best…_

Tears flooded her eyes as she looked up at him, he smiled slightly and wiped them away with the tip of his thumb but she turned away from him, head cast to the floor.

"Why are you doing this, Finn?" She croaked.

"Because, you needed to know." He said simply in a gentle whisper.

She shook her head in refusal; "No - no this makes everything so much harder… I can't … I don't know…"

He put his hands either side of her face and kissed her forehead, leaning down so that their eyes were level.

"Life can be hard sometimes, Rachel, but I'm not going to force anything on you. I just needed you to know… but don't worry, I'm not going to pressure you into a decision. I know that you chose Jesse… you know something of my feelings about him… and now you know my feelings for you. I just… I want you to know that I'll be here if you ever feel that you want me."

And with that he removed his hands, straightened up and exited the hall from the door behind her.

Rachel leant against one of the long tables, still finding breathing difficult as her head whirred with impossible speed and volume.

* * *

><p>Kurt found himself walking towards the entrance hall where the four great hourglasses stood.<p>

He glanced up at the large glass cases and saw that Gryffindor were now dwindling behind Slytherin. Figures.

He scowled and then looked around himself; there was something especially creepy about the vast size of Hogwarts when it was shrouded in darkness, as it made it impossible to always see around completely where you were. There was always a gap in your vision, a hidden part from view. He found himself turning on the spot more often than was normal, so that he was sure anyone watching would assume he was being attacked by bees or something.

He kept his wand lifted, but mostly just felt slightly irritated. The sleepless night would make him look awful in the morning, and it didn't help that Blaine would be directly there to see his red eyes and dark circles beneath them.

He sighed and pouted; as soon as he found the older Gryffindor the better – then they could go back to the dormitory and be peaceful together again.

The last few weeks with Blaine had been blissfully brilliant. His heart felt lighter and he found himself smiling so much more than he used to. He was thrilled to discover that the jolts of electricity and flutters of his stomach did not fade over time. That he did not tire of his touch, or his eyes, or his kisses.

Kurt smiled to himself now and just wanted to find his boyfriend now, not because he wanted the game to stop so that he could sleep, but so that he could wrap his arms around his neck and-

Kurt's train of thought was snapped abruptly as suddenly the statue of a rigid-backed witch erupted with a strange substance.

Some kind of putrid green goo shot from where her mouth lay opened slightly and propelled itself towards Kurt.

The Gryffindor reacted just in time to lurch out of the way, avoiding the foul-smelling gunge, which steamed hot and melted into the stone with a slightly sickening sizzle.

Alarmed, the countertenor looked back at the statue, eyes trained on it and wondering if such an event would have a repetition.

It did.

This time Kurt tried to dive sideways, the gunge just narrowly missing his slippers as he was forced to do a roly-poly across the floor.

He whipped his head back up just as another shot was fired and he jumped backwards, knees crashing into the stone so that he let out a yelp.

The goo began to fire in far quicker succession then, and Kurt had to dance around on the spot to avoid it, the hits against the stone making a sufficient amount of noise.

It was tricky, but while doing so he kept trying to fire spells at the statue. This was rendered impossible, however, as he never had enough time to take aim while the disgusting substance catapulted towards him, a shower of it ricocheting off one of the walls and sprinkling his dressing down, causing him to make a noise of disgust as the stench would leave it forever stained.

Just then he found himself backed into a corner, beside the great doors, and he looked up in horror at the mouth of the witch's statue, gearing up to deliver the last fatal blow and finally defeat the younger Gryffindor.

Just at that moment another noise sounded.

"_Reducto_!"

The spell blasted from an unseen area and it hit the statue true in the face, shattering the stone and leaving it ineffective.

Kurt was saved.

He put a hand over his heart and bent over, panting from the explosion of exercise he had just exceeded.

He gasped a few more breaths, then looked up through bleary eyes, since the stench had made his eyes water.

Standing before him was somebody he had not expected.

His rescuer from the gunge was not Blaine, who he had assumed would stand before him now.

No, the great figure stepped into view, broad shoulders tense, wide face turned down in a frown, wand outstretched warily towards the fractured statue.

But dark eyes fixed on Kurt.

"What the _hell _is going on around here?" Karofsky said in a hushed whisper, fixing Kurt with a bewildered stare.

Kurt could not find it in him to respond, too overcome by exhaustion from his attack, and shock at the appearance of the one who had stopped it.

* * *

><p>Mercedes stood before David, hands on her hips and a questioning look on her face.<p>

"Is this some kind of set up?" She asked directly, not wanting to beat around the bush.

He leant back with two hands on the desk behind him and smiled slightly.

"You could call it that, yes."

"This is why you weren't supervising with Wes and Trent?" She guessed.

He nodded simply.

Mercedes frowned and sighed a little, not entirely sure if she wanted to ask the next question, but her curiosity getting the better of her.

"Why?"

David bit his lip for a moment and looked a little downcast, a little embarrassed and a little rejected. "Because, you never made an answer to my offer. I waited for some time, thinking you'd come to see me whatever the response, but you never did, and I can't help but wonder _why_ myself."

Mercedes shuffled uncomfortably but took a step towards him, not wanting him to feel shot down.

"You're a great guy David, and yes, I do kind of like you, but I don't know if this will work out… I'm sorry that I have been ignoring you, if that is how you feel, but it is only because I'm not often put in this sort of position - I can hardly think why I am now, and I didn't know what to say to you…" Mercedes looked up at him slowly, hoping he could forgive her for her previous dismissal.

David's brow furrowed in confusion.

"Okay… well, for starters I still find it hard to believe that no other guy has taken an interest. It astounds me. But also, why wouldn't it work? We both get on, we both sing, we never seem at a loss of things to talk about… I thought we'd go together perfectly."

Mercedes had never seen the Ravenclaw boy look so deflated, so vulnerable, it was a very odd thing to process with his usually upbeat and confident demeanour.

"I know on a rough basis we do, but I don't know, you're more pop and acoustic melodies, and I'm rhythm and blues. I just don't see it…"

David pushed himself off from the desk and walked towards her, putting a hand tentatively on her arm.

"You could always give it a chance? You never know, you may find we're more compatible than you think. You could give me at least that, couldn't you?"

He had that glint back in his eye as he gave her a small mischievous smile.

But Mercedes shook her head and his hand dropped with his hopeful expression.

"Look, it's not really got anything to do with you. I know that's cliché, but… I just don't need a man. Sure, I'm not opposed to romance, but I get by by myself and I don't need a guy to complicate things. I'm an independent diva, and I like it that way. Being single gives me the drive to get where I want – all my idols made successes of themselves while doing it alone, and I reckon I have to follow the same pattern if I ever want to make a success of myself. I'm not one of those girls who pines after guys. I did that once… but I chose not to. You just have to accept that."

"I do accept that," David said immediately, a new intensity in his eyes. "It's one of the things I admire most about you; your strength and your independence impress me every day. You're there for your friends and you can do almost anything you set your mind to and you can do it all by yourself. That's remarkable. But just because you _can _make it on your own… that doesn't mean that you _have_ to. I'm not going to supress who you are, I love who you are, but I just want to show you how much I do. Is that such a crime?"

Mercedes turned her head away as his face became dangerously close, she stepped away and walked behind him, he followed her with his saddened gaze.

"It isn't. It isn't your fault, either. But, like I said, relationships just complicate things. I have seen what love has done to my friends. I want to focus on me. Not because I want to be selfish, but because I need to find my place, my direction, before I get distracted by someone else."

"Kurt and Blaine are happy. Doesn't that say something? That you can have love and ambition at the same time?" David asked with certain urgency, wishing that he could have her agree.

"They're an exception…" She said, looking to the floor.

"You don't believe you can have that?" David asked.

Mercedes shook her head slowly.

David felt a feeling of despair in the pit of his stomach. For all the bravado, all the feistiness of her personality, Mercedes could still be so insecure, so doubtful of her own happiness.

"It can happen for you too, I know that it can." He told her in earnest.

"I just can't be with someone right now. I need to just be myself." Mercedes insisted.

David looked up at her with his big warm eyes, shining slightly in the dim light and he gave her a small, sad smile, trying to convey his conviction as much as was possible; "You can still be yourself, with someone else. You can have everything and be everything that you want to be. I truly believe that."

She stared at him for a long moment, her inner-conflictions raging. Some of them remaining unspoken, because she did not wish to divulge them. She did not know what to do.

That was when a black-robed figure stepped into the doorway before them; arms folded and face a picture of silent fury.

* * *

><p>"What are you doing here?" Kurt asked immediately, instinctively backing into the corner he was stood beside, memories of times where the two of them had been alone together in the castle at night flooding back in waves of panic and fear.<p>

Karofsky seemed crestfallen by the horrified expression on Kurt's face at that moment.

"I just freaking saved your ass, and now you think I'm here to beat you up or something?" He retorted.

"To be fair, Karofsky, you and I don't exactly have the best track record when it comes to our encounters with one another."

The large Slytherin looked down to the ground, and said in a sorrowful voice, which perturbed Kurt further; "I know that."

Even though the younger Gryffindor still felt wary of his presence, he did not feel any danger in him being there. He did not believe that the Slytherin was about to harm him and so he stepped forward, out of the shadows.

"Okay… So why are you here then?"

Karofsky did not look at all happy to be asked that question, and so instead asked it back to him; "Why are you here? And why is there so much weird shit going on around the place? I just had to expel a swarm of spiders that were streaming across the second floor. Is the castle tricked out or something?"

Kurt narrowed his eyes; he had a feeling that Karofsky's deflection meant that he was not meant to be out at night, much like the rest of them, and he had a feeling this was not the first time his bully had wandered the halls recently. He expected that these night-time walks also contributed to the reason why he had not been showing up to class in the daytime. These nocturnal habits were very suspicious, and Kurt couldn't help thinking that he – and Blaine – were somehow to blame.

The younger Gryffindor folded his arms neatly and walked towards the Slytherin, who still stood half way up the stone steps that led down to the entrance hall where Kurt was standing.

"It's a game. A Halloween game."

"You're playing a game where you tackle random creatures and gunge by yourself?" Karofsky asked in a puzzled tone.

Kurt rolled his eyes. "No, of course I'm not doing it alone. I was roped into it. You think this is my idea of fun? That stuff was positively repugnant."

"Who's doing it then? Your boyfriend?" He asked the last part darkly, face falling.

"He's involved, yes." Kurt said assuredly, watching as Karofsky's eyes flashed.

There was a silence held between the two boys for a long moment, where they simply stared, tension rising as they tried to understand the other, and both failing in their attempts.

"Why did you help me out?" Kurt asked in a quiet voice, arms unfolding, now genuinely curious about the Slytherin's motives as he took a couples of steps up the stairs towards him.

Karofsky didn't move but looked unnerved. He tried to shrug casually, but he was far too tense and awkward to pull it off convincingly; "I wasn't going to leave you to be pulverised, was I? What kind of tripped out game is this anyway?"

"Beats me," Kurt said, a little miffed but then he sighed, "It's not as though that stuff would have harmed me, it would have merely been positively wretched, and murder to clean."

"Still," Karofsky scoffed.

Kurt looked up at the older boy, eyes still wrought with curiosity as he watched. He seemed thinner, still broad, but less blocky. His skin was far paler and slightly less opaque looking. His eyes seemed swollen and red, his hair was unkempt and his fingernails, Kurt saw, were bitten raw down to the beds.

"…Are you okay?"

Karofsky pursed his lips, looking determinedly away and his jaw clenched, unable to speak.

"Is there a reason you haven't been going to lessons?" Kurt asked quietly, climbing the steps yet further to meet Karofsky in the middle of them.

He still did not answer, insistently looking away as his breathing became laboured.

"Is there a reason why you wander around here at night?"

No reply.

"Does it… does it have anything to do with what happened last year?"

A flash of Karofsky's eyes, even when looking at the wall opposite, confirmed this for Kurt.

"Dave…" Kurt said.

The use of his name took the Slytherin by surprise as he looked back towards the Gryffindor, so that he could now clearly see the moist tears welling in the large boy's eyes. Kurt remembered the concerns that Blaine had about the boy before him. Remembered the tension wrought between the two of them whenever he had been brought up recently. Remembered the few intense looks between the two older boys that Blaine had thought Kurt hadn't seen.

Something finally clicked, and Kurt thought that he knew why Blaine had been so wary of the boy who stood in front of him now. And perhaps why Karofsky extended similarly negative – if more aggressive – feelings towards the boy that Kurt adored.

"…Dave, does this have anything to do with why you kissed me?"

Karofsky's eyes widened in terror as he took a step backwards.

"No! Please, come on, don't run away from this," Kurt pleaded. He hated the thought that it was all true what Blaine had initially suspected after the kiss – that Karofsky was fighting so hard against his sexuality, that he refused to accept it, that it was torturing him from the inside out. That it was the reason behind why he had been so unbelievably cruel. Because he was angry, and confused, and wanted to find a physical way to fight against it all.

The Slytherin stopped on the stairs, frozen for a moment as Kurt watched, rather frightened at what he might do, but then Dave simply sat down on the step, burying his head in his hands, a low sob ripping from his throat.

Kurt had not been expecting such a reaction, and it took him a while to process it all in his mind.

Soon enough though, he pulled himself together and went up to Dave, sitting beside him and very slowly placing a tentative hand on his shoulder. He patted it gingerly, the action feeling extremely unnatural.

"It's okay," He whispered. "Do you… do you want to talk about it?"

"There's nothing to talk about," Dave insisted angrily, clawing at his tears with his hands.

"I think that there is, Dave, I think that you need to talk to someone about it." He tried to keep his voice calm and free from his own perplexing race of thoughts about the entire situation.

"God," Dave groaned and his hand shot through his hair, tugging at the tangles. "This is so freaking dumb. I'm pathetic."

"You aren't." Kurt said in a low whisper. "It's completely normal to be confused about these things, I know that not everyone finds it as easy to come to terms with as I did… but, Dave, I think that you need to admit it to yourself. Your sexuality is who you are, and you can't change that. You're only going to be more and more miserable if you keep on denying it."

The Slytherin clenched his jaw tightly and spat; "I'm not gay, okay, I'm not."

Kurt sighed, would he ever be able to win this debate? He wasn't so sure.

"Why does it matter? Are you just afraid of what other's will say?" He asked.

Karofsky did not say anything, but Kurt could tell that this was at least partly true.

"Screw 'em." He said simply.

"I…I can't." The older boy said in a strained voice.

He let out a noise of deep frustration and slammed his fist against the step beside them. He swore and shook it before placing it back down on the stone.

Except his hand didn't meet stone when he put it back down.

It fell onto Kurt's hand.

Dave looked up in unison with the countertenor, who could now see his tear-stained eyes and twisted expression – conflicted with emotions, half of which Kurt could not distinguish.

"I'm not gay," He insisted. But his hand didn't move.

Kurt looked down at it, unable to produce any words.

What was happening? Why did Karofsky look at him like that? Where was Blaine? Why had he not found him yet?

He found his voice again, "Dave, you need to be able to confess it to yourself."

"But… But I don't think that I am." He said in a low voice, barely audible, but eyes still trained on Kurt's own blue sapphires.

"What do you mean?" Kurt asked, brow furrowed in confusion, his hand still underneath the Slytherin's because he did not know how to remove it without his notice, and he was scared of the reaction from this emotionally-on-edge boy who had a history of violence.

"Kurt…" He whispered. "It's not that I am attracted to loads of guys."

"Okay…" Kurt said slowly, wondering where this was going and feeling a slight prickle of sweat on his forehead.

"I… I don't care about other guys." Dave said, his eyes looked large now, as they did not blink as he looked at Kurt, all truth and sincerity held within them.

"I only care about you."

Kurt could not register this statement. What did that mean? Why was he saying that? What was going on?

The Slytherin could see the lack of understanding in Kurt's eyes, which were always so revealing of his soul and mind.

"Kurt… I love you."

A dead weight plummeted inside Kurt's stomach. The sweat fully broke across his forehead and his mind seemed to lift clean out of his head as his mouth dropped open, utterly dumbfounded by what had just been spoken to him.

He was frozen.

The words didn't make sense. They were a lie. They had to be… but no, because that was not a voice of a liar. Kurt's chest felt constricted.

This was not happening.

Why was Karofsky leaning so close to him?

Why could he not move?

No, no. This was bad. This was all wrong. This wasn't possible.

His heart hammered.

Why could he not function his body?

Just then, as the Slytherin's face seemed only an inch away from the distressed Gryffindor, a shadow fell across them both.

Kurt finally found the ability to move again as he jerked his head upwards towards the top of the staircase.

A figure stood above them.

A figure with clenched fists and a rigid stance.

Blaine stared down at the pair of them. The two boys that were sitting so close to one another, hand over hand, heads so close that they could have been about to kiss. Karofsky's face an expression of pure desire, Kurt's eyes wide and mouth open.

Blaine's lips were ghostly white as they pressed together in an attempt to hold himself steady. His skin was drained of colour and his eyes… his eyes looked as though someone were driving a red-hot poker into his skin, searing him with unbearable pain.

He held those eyes only to Kurt now, who watched as his boyfriend took a step backwards, body trembling and breathing stopped, tears unable to appear.

Then he disappeared.

"_Blaine_!" Kurt yelled, forgetting the Slytherin next to him, and bolting up the steps.

* * *

><p>Hello Readers!<p>

No, I haven't forgotten about you all! I am so so so so so so sorry about the delay in this posting. If any of you have bothered to read my previous author's notes, you will know that I got accepted to university and have just started here - very scary! Yet, very exciting! Anyway, I have barely had a moment to breathe amidst moving in, getting to know people, figuring out classes and joining every society that will fit into my schedule! I do apologise profusely and I hope that you will all be able to forgive me. Then again, given the cliffhanger at the end of this chapter, perhaps not! Anyway, I am still writing, you may just have to bare with me a little here while I get my bearings down in this new city and system of education and people and ahhhhhhh! So much stuff! I hope you guys have all been enjoying this season on Glee so far! My God, how shall we survive this hiatus? Another 3 weeks? You have to be joking! No? Damn... Oh well, next few episodes look really good so fingers crossed it will be worth the wait!

How are you all? Having fun? Many must be back at school and things by now (yay.) No, I'm kidding, I love school. I love learning because I'm weird like that but I am not ashamed to admit it! Neither should you all be if you're similar! Anyway, I need to work hard so that I can run away to America to escape all the horrible people here in Britain (kidding!) and go and stalk the cast of Glee and Starkids (half-kidding...)

Anyway I better zip zap and zoop away (what's a zoop?) hope you all like the chapter, even if it does leave you in suspense and slight despair! Keep reviewing! I love to hear from you all and I will not forget to update, just will do so slowly!

Zeeeeeeeeeeeeep!


	29. Chapter 28: Vulnerable

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Vulnerable

(Songs: Esme Denters – Outta Here)

* * *

><p>"Blaine! Blaine, <em>please<em>! Slow down!" Kurt shouted desperately as he ran in pursuit of the older boy, who was walking away at an insanely fast pace.

He seemed relentless on his mission to escape.

"_Blaine_! Please, it's not what you think!"

This struck him.

Blaine whirled around on the spot, suddenly advancing towards Kurt, who stopped up short, alarmed now that he had gotten his wish of preventing his boyfriend from leaving.

"_Don't tell me what I think_!" He bellowed and his face was contorted with such anguish that Kurt could barely move but to stare at him. "Don't you_ dare_ Kurt, don't you fucking dare."

His voice was strangled, worse than it had been when he had confessed about Nathan, it sounded cracked, as though someone had clamped a cage around his vocal chords and his words scraped against this restriction.

Kurt's eyes grew wide and pleading. "Let me explain-"

"I don't want to hear it!" Blaine thundered, his hand shot out before him, towards the countertenor who stood several feet away, but he pulled back the hand which quickly went to the side of his head, tearing at his hair as he closed his eyes, unable to stop himself from shaking.

"You know…" He said in a quiet, painstaking voice, eyes opening again as he gazed at Kurt with so much hurt and so much confusion. "You know that I find it so damn hard to get close to people… to trust them. You know because…" He was finding it hard to continue over a tearless sob that ripped from his throat, "…You know because you're the _only _person I can tell those things to. You're the only person I could…"

He couldn't go on as he brought both hands to his temples, jaw clenched and unable to look at the boy before him.

"Please," Kurt said with the upmost urgency. He had to make him understand, he had to make him see that it was not how it seemed.

"It's not that - It wasn't. Dave was upset and-"

"Dave?" Blaine almost choked on the term. "Oh he's fucking _Dave_ to you now is he? How long has this been going on, Kurt? He was right… goddammit he was right. About everything. He was telling the truth, when he said…"

Kurt didn't understand a lot about that last part but he didn't care; "Please - You've got it all wrong!"

He tried to step forwards but Blaine took a step back and held a hand out. It was shaking. "Don't come near me!"

"Why won't you listen to me?" Kurt yelled back, trying to force him to do so.

"I don't have to listen, Kurt, I saw it. I saw it with my own eyes and now I get to have that mental picture burned into my mind forever." As he spoke the words the idea of such a thing seemed to defeat him entirely as he turned his face away with a shuddering breath.

"Will you stop?" Kurt shouted. "Stop it! It's not true, it's-"

Blaine cut across him again, however, speaking with such rawness that it rendered Kurt speechless; "No… I can't… I can't do this. I… You were the only person that I thought would never hurt me - would never leave me and now… I can't. I'm not doing this. I won't be the one who is left again."

He seemed to be saying the harrowing words more to himself than to Kurt, but he stepped forward, trying to touch Blaine's arm even so, to do anything to stop this madness.

But Blaine jerked away and leapt back from him; "Get off! I trusted you, Kurt, and you went and did this? I can't even look at you right now, so don't you dare even _think_ about touching me!"

He spat the last words with another suppressed sob and then he turned around and stormed off down the hallway.

"Blaine!" Kurt yelled after him, trying to take another step forwards, but legs failing him.

"Blaine! Come back…. _Blaine_!"

* * *

><p>Blaine could hardly see as the tears stung his eyes, his breath coming rough and ragged through his windpipe, heart hammering.<p>

This was not happening; how could this be happening? His worst fears… confirmed in visual torture. The image of the pair of them flashed again and he clutched a hand to his face to cover his eyes, fruitlessly hoping that would destroy the picture.

He grit his teeth and saw Karofsky's black eyes, then Kurt's dazzling blue ones in his mind's eye. He couldn't decide which one was worse; which one brought the most pain. Probably the second.

He couldn't believe Kurt would do this, but he had – he _had_ seen it. Kurt, beautiful, pure Kurt…

Why?

Blaine emitted a coughing shudder but shut his eyes tight, tears squeezing their way from his eyes as his sockets burned. He felt betrayed, he felt wounded, and he felt angry.

He felt like he wanted to run, and keep on running until there was nowhere else to go, until he reached the ends of the universe.

His eyes snapped open, fire searing through them.

_Get me out of here,_

_Cos' my eyes are burning from these silly tears_

_That you brought when you showed me you don't really care,_

_And you never loved me…_

Blaine wrenched the words from his lips and then quickened his pace down the hallways, fists clenched and legs strong as he tore through the castle.

_Someone get me out of this place_

_Right now_

_It's so amazing_

_How you have so many faces_

_And you are not that person I thought_

_That I had fell so deep in love with._

He ejected a laugh of humourless disgust to one side, but he carried on with scorching fury, hardly believing that he had allowed himself to be so stupid.

_You changed up your make up_

_Your DNA_

_I can't recognise, you're a stranger to me_

_I feel so betrayed, what a waste of my heart…_

He put a hand to it then, gripping the fabric there and wishing he could pull it out entirely. He stuck out his other hand and tore at one of the tapestries instead, shredding them in his rage unthinkingly. His breathing was tight, but he continued:

_Get me out of here_

_Cos my eyes are burning from these silly tears_

_That you brought when you showed me you don't really care,_

_And you never loved me_

_Someone get me out of this place._

_Right now._

He found the marble staircase without knowing how he had got there and he stormed up them furiously, they seemed to cease movement, as though they knew that preventing his path right now would only enrage him further. Blaine, in a way, knew he was being foolish, he knew he was overreacting, but this only made him more livid with himself.

He found himself feeling weaker now, and clutched the bannister, he thought with fresh ferocity of Karofsky; how he had stolen the one thing in his life that gave him hope; how he seemed to relentlessly attempt to drive a chasm between the two of them; how he hated the Slytherin beyond repair, and he whispered:

_My body's trembling_

_It's so damn hard to kick this feeling_

_Your heart is so cold_

_And now I'm freezing_

_Wish you could feel the pain_

_Maybe I will arrange it_

_Yeah yeah_

_You changed up your make up your DNA_

_I can't recognise you're a stranger to me_

_I feel so betrayed_

_What a waste of my heart and me_

He carried on up the stairway now, mind focused back on Kurt, all though this was no more pleasant a fixture.

_Get me out of here_

_Because my eyes are burning from these silly tears_

_Which you brought when you showed me you don't really care,_

_And you never loved me_

_Someone get me out of this place_

His pace slowed as he allowed the tears to fall from his face, splashing the stone beneath him, a hand ripped into his hair and his face crumpled, barely able to compose himself.

_I thought that we were forever_

_I guess I misunderstood…_

_My fault for thinking you loved me_

_Or even thinking you ever could…_

He gasped his next breath, chest constricting like iron bars were clamped across it, as he knew he was the one to blame for all of this. He should never have let himself be so ready to be broken; now he felt shattered, the one thing he had promised himself to never let happen.

_Get me out of here…right now…_

_Get me out of here… Right now…_

He threw one more gasp into the air before he ran up the next few steps and up to the portrait of the Fat Lady. He did not even speak the password; she caught one look at his face and swung open, not wanting to say anything to him, knowing that he'd never fathom a coherent response. She looked positively fearful.

_Get me out of here_

_Cos my eyes are burning from these silly tears_

_That you brought when you showed me you don't really care_

_And you never loved me_

_Someone get me out of this place_

He looked up at the marble staircase, knowing that he could not go to his dormitory in case Kurt returned, or even Finn for that matter, instead he looked over at the door to the side, leading to a room reserved for quiet study and he crossed over to it, feeling like he would collapse at any moment.

_Get me out of here_

_Cos my eyes are burning from these silly tears_

_That you brought when you showed me you don't really care_

_And you never loved me_

_Someone get me out of this place_

Blaine found a chair in the small cupboard-like room, and he curled up within it, wrapping his arms around his head and wanting it to all go away, wanting it to stop. He didn't want to think any more. He didn't want to do anything.

_Right now…_

_Right now…_

_Right now…_

_Someone get me out of this place._

_Get me out of here…_

* * *

><p>Kurt was on his knees in the middle of the hallway when they found him. He hardly registered that it was Snape who told him to get up, that the others all had faces of panic as the Potion's Master explained that he had heard sounds from his office, that he had come and found them all out of bed, that they all had detention and that 50 points would be taken from each of them.<p>

Karofsky had disappeared, however - God knows when he had made his escape.

Kurt hardly registered this information until much later. He vaguely recalled the curious glance that Snape gave him, by no means compassionate, but slightly concerned by the blank stare that Kurt returned, as though perhaps he related to the emptiness that seemed to exude from the younger Gryffindor, feeling as though he had lost everything. But soon the Potion's master sneered and he was sure he had imagined it.

He had seen the rest of their faces as well, but couldn't even conjure up their expressions in his mind.

They had seen his though. He had not been crying – a rarity at the best of times. He did not need to be, however, because it was all scorched into his eyes, which were almost insufferable to behold. Each of them stared at him in silence, desperate to know what had happened, but Snape forced them all into silence when they attempted to find out. Kurt couldn't answer them anyway, indeed he could not even respond when the Potion's Master sent them back to their common rooms. Mercedes and Rachel entered Gryffindor's with him, they tried to ask him what had happened, but he just stared mutely ahead of him. Finn came down the stairs when he heard them, and he took one look at his brother and went straight to his side. He wasn't even sure how he had managed to walk. Perhaps Finn had helped guide him there? He had no idea. There was no way of knowing.

Blaine was not in their dormitory, but the realisation hardly surprised him; he had expected as much and did not allow himself to think where he could be.

Kurt merely lay down on his bed, abandoning his usual bed-time routines, not even bothering to change or to peel back his covers. He curled into a ball, hugging his knees to his chest, his arms wrapping around, as he rested his forehead onto them. He wasn't even sure if he fell asleep, or just became numb to the world.

Finn stood over him for a while, mind racing and face twisted as he tried to search for something to do, something to say — anything.

He had never seen Kurt like this, not when Karofsky was harassing him, not when Burt had been in hospital. He wondered if he had been similar when his mother had died – it was possible.

He could do nothing, nothing but put his own duvet over his brother so that he would not freeze.

Finn looked out at the night sky and then across to Blaine's empty bed.

What the hell was going on?

* * *

><p>Finn had a hard time explaining why both his brother and Blaine were missing from lessons the next day. He tried to say that they were both ill, but it was difficult to come up with reasons why neither had been sent to Madame Pomfrey. He said he suspected it was only a muggle sickness that would be overcome in a couple days with bed rest. He only prayed that the pair of them would return to class by then, so that the teachers would not feel the need to investigate.<p>

Kurt had not said a word of what had happened to anyone, but most of them could guess, because Karofsky was still missing, and it didn't take a genius to work it out after they had known about the fall-out before Kurt and Blaine had got together (Kurt having finally confessed to Mercedes after constant badgering). Wes, Trent and David had also suspected Blaine's paranoia, and all though they didn't know the exact details as to why the situation had blown up, they knew the root of it.

Getting through to each boy to find out the exact truth, however, had proven a futile task. Finn was lucky to squeeze two words out of Kurt for the next couple days.

The countertenor did, however, return to class after a short while, to his brother's relief, but his communicative skills improved very little. He would answer teachers, but in flat tones and as monosyllabically as possible. He would go to lessons, take notes, and then disappear before any of them had a chance to speak with him, going off to God knows where. He returned late to the dormitory each evening, with a quick word that he wished to go to bed because he was tired, and Finn hardly knew how to argue with him when his face looked so…broken.

Blaine remained sleeping in the small study, or so they suspected, very little was seen of him at all. He too turned up to the lessons after a few days, but neither boy showed any signs that they had even acknowledged the other's existence, keeping their heads down and lips sealed. It was clear that both were monstrously upset, but that was about all the information they could gather. It was as if neither of them really lived within Hogwart's walls, despite their usually vibrant personalities, they turned to all shades of grey and seemed to fade into the stone setting around them, as though they had never been there at all.

* * *

><p>Finn filed out of his last lesson of the day, wrapped up in thoughts of his brother and how he could possibly help him. Problem was, Kurt seemed in such a fragile state that Finn was too afraid to say anything to him, since he had no way of predicting what reaction it could entail. He seemed like a porcelain doll, so easy to break and yet so difficult to fix perfectly so that you had to handle it with the upmost care and not run the risk of doing so.<p>

He sighed, feeling so frustrated at the circumstances surrounding them all that at first he didn't even hear the Slytherin Seeker shout his name.

"Hey, I was talking to you." Jesse's voice came in clearer now and Finn looked up to see the older boy walk hastily towards him down the corridor.

His eyes were like daggers at Finn and he pointed sharply to his left, head bent low and seething, gesturing towards an empty classroom where, Finn guessed, he wanted to have a little chat.

The tall Gryffindor followed him in apprehensively and Jesse slowly closed the door behind them, turning around and folding his arms firmly.

"So," He said in a curt tone, intense eyes blazing as always, "I hear that you have been singing love songs to my girlfriend again, and it really does beg the question: when are you going to give it up?"

"Who told you that?" Finn asked, sidestepping the Slytherin's question, which he took to be mostly rhetorical, as they both knew it was to be no time soon.

"Rachel did, after a little coercing – she's been acting funny the past few days and I knew something way up."

Finn twitched a small smile at this as it proved that the song had affected her.

"Don't think that means anything," Jesse hissed smugly, "If you'd care to pay attention, you'd notice that she is still with me despite all of that."

Finn's face did fall a little, but his expression also remained determined. "She felt something when I sang to her, I know that much – she sang with me."

Jesse's expression was now the one to falter at this new information, but he stayed stern; "She chose _me –_ When are you going to get that into that tiny, pixie-sized brain of yours?"

"She thinks that you're someone that you're not," Finn said, looking at Jesse with the upmost contempt, staring down at the shorter boy and at that moment, basking in the height difference which made him feel superior.

Jesse's face looked at him in incredulous confusion; "What are you on about? Why do you always say such cryptic nonsense?"

"You know why," Finn stated simply.

Jesse merely stared up at the younger boy, trying to comprehend his meaning and failing, so changing tact.

"You won't get her, you know," He said in a low growl.  
>"I don't think a slimy git like you is going to stop me," Finn retorted in a vicious whisper.<p>

"As if you haven't done enough – now you're trying to take Rachel from me – what is it you're trying to do here? Leave me with nothing?" Jesse was fuming now, fists quaking and skin reddening.

The Gryffindor looked a little nonplussed at such a violent reaction.

"What? …What are you on about?"

Jesse seemed to ignore these questions; "I'm not going to let you win, Finn, she's mine and I'm not giving her up, and I'm willing to reveal your dirty little secret in order to keep her. Don't think that I won't play these games with every ounce of ferocity you have, if not more."

Finn was now fully taken aback and perplexed – what was this guy on?

"Excuse me?" Finn spluttered.

"_Don't play dumb_!" Jesse thundered, "I know that task is particularly difficult for you, since you have the mental capacity of a teaspoon, but do not do me the injustice of pretending that you haven't done what you did!"

"Okay, seriously Jesse, I know you're one for dramatics… but it was just a song, dude, this is a bit of an overreaction…" Finn muttered, looking a little frightened of the enraged Slytherin now.

"I'm not talking about the song, you great troll, I'm talking about Quinn!" Jesse finally shouted, and Finn could tell that this was exactly what he had been locking up inside him, exactly what made him hate the younger Gryffindor boy so much.

He even took a small step backwards. "What? Quinn? How can _you_ possibly be mad at _me_ about Quinn?"

This made no sense; it had to be some kind of joke. This was completely the wrong way around. Quinn was the reason he was angry at Jesse, not vice versa – it was why they had been arguing when Rachel walked in and why Finn had loathed the Seeker before he and Rachel had even started dating. Why he had warned Rachel not to go near him.

"For God's sake! I mean about you getting her pregnant you Neanderthal!" Jesse bellowed, flecks of spit flying from his mouth as he still maintained perfect diction.

Finn felt as though he had been hit by a frying pan, whose blow reverberated in the silent classroom. The effect was staggering and he was sure his face had never looked so shocked in his entire life as he jutted his head forward and gawped in amazement.

"I…You… _What?_"

Jesse's jaw was clenched so tightly together he was worried his teeth may shatter from the force as he shook and spoke in a barely audible hiss:

"Don't act like you don't know. I saw you together, and I know you knew we were together before, and I know that you leapt on her at the first chance you got. Yet now you have her you decide to pounce on Rachel too? _Well I'm not having it!_"

Jesse backed out the classroom, eyes fixed on Finn with tremendous fury burning within them.

"Jesse, I don't think you-"

But the Slytherin had already vanished before he could hear the urgently desperate words.

* * *

><p>Kurt hugged his books to his chest as he made his way back towards the Common Room as curfew drew to a close, the cold chill of outside's wind still tingling his cheeks. He had been out there for a long while, away from it all, trying to see if the temperature would numb him emotionally as it did physically. He suppressed it all down into a neat little package, tucked away inside.<p>

One foot in front of the other, he paced towards the marble staircases, before he reached it, however, somebody else entered his line of vision.

Somebody who he really did not want to see right now…

"I have to talk to you," Karofsky said in a voice that most resembled begging.

Kurt did not look him in the eyes, merely kept his head down, stepped to one side, and attempted to carry on walking.

The Slytherin caught his arm, however, and stopped him from moving.

He had expected to receive a harsh reprimand and angry shout from the Gryffindor, much like the last time he had performed such an action by the Divination tower, yet no such reaction met him.

Kurt merely came to a halt and looked down to where the larger boy's hand was clasped around his elbow. He seemed to have no emotional response.

The countertenor lifted his eyes and stared into Karofsky's now, and the Slytherin boy seemed to squirm at the sight of them, not because they were trying to push him down, but because of the opposite. They made him uneasy, because they seemed like empty voids.

"What's wrong?"

Kurt's face shifted into something of a sarcastic expression and Karofsky sighed.

"Okay, so I know what's wrong, but seriously… you look awful."

It was true, whatever had gone down in the past few days had certainly unsettled Kurt in the most revealing of ways. His skin seemed to have gained an almost yellow tinge, pale and sickly. His eyes were red and seemed smaller, strained from the pressure preventing his tear ducts. His lips were dry and ghostly, looking fixed in their down-turned position. The shadows under his eyes seemed to blend into his cheekbones…

"Thank you," He whispered bluntly.

Well, at least he spoke.

The Slytherin let go of the Gryffindor boy, but he did not move all the same, and simply let his arm drop to his side.

"Kurt… if there's anything I can do-"

A short, low cough blew from Kurt's throat as if it had been rejected from it and his eyes flashed now, substance restoring to them.

"I think that you have done quite enough already," He said with a snarl.

Kurt gripped the books to his chest again, fingers trembling and he pressed his lips together, trying to keep composure.

"Kurt… Don't you see what's happening to you? It's all his fault, you know; you're so damn dependent on him and it's tearing you apart."

Kurt choked a little and bit back tears.

"Stop it," He said in a whispering breath.

"You know I'm right," Karofsky said, sounding angry himself as he shook his head furiously at the state of the younger boy. "He's poison."

Kurt seemed to sway slightly, but he did not answer.

Karofsky blew out a long breath from his cheeks as he looked exasperatedly at Kurt.

"He doesn't want you Kurt, he's proven that now, hasn't he? When are you going to wake up and see that? I'm here for you now, see?"

Kurt found himself shaking his head instinctively, clutching his sides, fingernails biting into the skin of his upper arms as he shut his eyes in an attempt to shut him out.

Karofsky seemed to become angry at this silent dismissal. "You're dreaming, Kurt, and you're blind to reality."

Kurt fought back any displays of emotion, but he had already betrayed it long ago, in fact he'd hardly managed to conceal it at all. Cracks were appearing everywhere in his armour.

"He can't love you like I can."

"Just _shut up!_"

Something snapped and unleashed the tears in Kurt's eyes, which proceeded to roll down his face as he wrapped his arms around himself tighter.

The Slytherin seemed alarmed now and tried to take a step forward, but Kurt backed away wildly, wanting to escape, to run and hide, and put as much distance between himself and the toxic boy as possible.

"You… you don't know what you're talking about. You don't know anything about him - or about me for that matter. You have absolutely no idea… Keep away from me!" He insisted.

"You can't keep denying it," Karofsky called as the countertenor turned and started to make his way up the staircase at a fleeing pace, stumbling over the steps.

"You know he's no good, Kurt! You know he's not right for you!"

But the Gryffindor disappeared and Karofsky turned sharply, thrusting his hands in his hair and then slapping one palm against his forehead, cursing profanities into the night in his frustration.

* * *

><p>Rachel was rudely awoken by a tapping at her window. She sat up, rubbing her eyes with her fists and looked across to the blackened squares that revealed the night as well as a tiny white owl.<p>

She heaved herself up from her bed, swung her legs around the side and sloped towards the window dozily, wrenching the window open with great effort, and allowing the bird entrance.

"Whaaaat?" She groaned, eyes barely opened as it placed the letter in her hand.

She glanced over at Mercedes, who had not stirred, sighed, and opened the letter.

_Dear Rachel, _

_I realise that it is late, and I know that I will see you tomorrow where we can discuss this further, but I feel as though I need to inform you of this now. I think that you may already suspect what I have to tell you – but I feel that you need the confirmation…_

Rachel continued to read Jesse's letter and as she did so her hand flew to her mouth – he had been right about its confirmation. Confirmation of the troublesome thoughts that had spun around her head for weeks now. She felt as though a hole had been drilled into the pit of her stomach as her hand that held the letter dropped to her side, and she couldn't help but allow a single tear to fall from her cheek and splash upon the carpet beneath her.

* * *

><p>Hello Readers,<p>

Apologies, I know I left you on a cliffhanger last time, and I am willing to bet that if that made you angry, this will by no means improve your mood...

Juuuuuuust wait

;)

Yes, that's all I'm saying!

Apart from another BIG thank you to everyone who has been reviewing and are still following this story! You guys are the best! Hope you're surviving the hiatus. I barely am.


	30. Chapter 29: Need

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Need

(Songs: Vanessa Carlton – Pretty Baby)

* * *

><p>The six Hogwarts students made their way, a week later, towards their detention, Professor Snape leading the way, his black robes billowing out behind him as they continued in silence, having no idea where they were to be taken and what punishment was about to be administered.<p>

Wes, David and Trent felt guilty about having gotten the rest of them in trouble, and had apologised enough already. Mercedes had assured them that it was fine – there was no use arguing about it, and in all honesty, they had _all_ broken the rules. Rachel had been very quiet over the last couple of days, much like her male-match Kurt, who walked at the rear of the group, head down and hands clasped mechanically in front of him as he walked. He, unlike the rest of them, seemed to show no change of mood from now compared to the last week – it was forever constant.

Finn, Blaine and Karofsky, of course, had not been caught, having all left before the Potion's Master had found them all wandering around out of bed at night. However, Finn and Rachel seemed to have hit another awkward stage, the latter not particularly regretting his lack of presence for her own reasons, and all though the others may not fully understand why, they appreciated the fact that they would not have to endure the uncomfortable tension. And they could all agree that Blaine, Kurt and Karofsky certainly shouldn't all be held within one room at this point in time. So the absentees were not entirely missed by those of them who had been caught.

Snape was oblivious to the fact that the others had been there, so it did not matter, and they weren't about to throw anyone else under the bus, and so they all carried on, accepting their punishments.

Mercedes and David looked up for a moment, catching each other's eyes and then quickly averting them – perhaps not all discomfort would be dispelled from the proceedings.

The Potions Master suddenly came to a grinding halt just next to the stairway that led to his Dungeons.

He brandished his wand and tapped a tiny gold statue of a Merman, which stood on a small podium next to the withered grey steps.

The Merman revolved around in a circle, several loud clicks emitting from the podium it stood upon, until it eventually came back to its original fixture. However, now a thin crack had appeared alongside the podium, as if the movement had pulled the wall apart.

Snape whispered an incantation; "_Expositus_!"

The stones made a low grumbling sound and shifted, pushing the Golden Merman aside and opening up an entirely new entrance.

The others all stared at each other – it was far beyond them all to be surprised by such occurrences anymore, since you did not find another place more tripped-out than this castle, but it did present a rather ominous undertone to their detention.

Trent swallowed and Mercedes pursed her lips – glancing at Kurt whose brow was furrowed slightly, yet no other emotion betrayed his features.

His best friend sighed and returned her attention to the passage way which Snape was now leading them all down, it having opened up onto a new stairway which they apparently had to go down.

They exchanged quick, worrisome glances, but had no choice but to follow.

The passage was very narrow, so that they had to proceed in single-file, and dimly lit, with only a few flickering candles burning along the black-stoned walls. The stone was shiny, like slick marble panels, polished with the upmost precision. There was a strange stench wafting towards their noses as well. It was not strange because it was bizarre for their olfactory senses, but more because they had not suspected such a familiar scent to meet them here.

It was the unmistakable smell of Chlorine.

At that moment Snape had come to the bottom of the stairs, and the six students met him there, clustering around the cold teacher and looking out at a mass of water that stood within the room – encased in the exact same stone that had lined the steps they had just been down. The water looked black from the reflection of these walls, but a strange purplish light lit it up from underneath, and a great mosaic lay on the floor beneath it – a group of Merpeople were artistically represented beneath the depths and their bodies swirled and trembled from the gentle ripple of the water.

They all simultaneously looked up at the Potions Master, who did not return their gaze, instead his lip curled up slightly in a sneer, and he spoke in his slow drawl:

"This is Hogwart's hidden swimming pool."

* * *

><p>Blaine touched down on his broom once Quidditch practice had ended. He felt slightly better, because flying always had that positive effect on him, yet mostly he still felt wretched. He wanted to go back indoors and hide away from everybody. He had no energy for the game anymore, and that much was clear by the lack of skill he had shown that evening and how his teammate's quiet frustration resounded around the pitch, but with no actual berating words spoken. It did not take them long to realise that something was wrong with him, and they did not pry, but it did not make them any less exasperated.<p>

However, Blaine showed little care for this, since it was taken over by a slightly unprecedented reaction from the Gryffindor Keeper.

Finn, though he had not said anything to Blaine directly, had played supportively alongside him all practice. The older boy couldn't help thinking that there must be something out of place about this – surely Finn should hate him right now?

He needed to know.

Blaine looked up just in time to see the wizard in question crossing his path and so he called out without thinking and jogged over to him:

"Hey, well played tonight," He said, feeling like an utter prat saying it.

"Mmm…" Finn responded less than enthusiastically.

"Why were you being so… nice to me? On the field, I mean…" Blaine asked, a hopeful not to his voice.

Finn stopped then, folded his arms and turned to look down at the perplexed vocalist. "Let's not get this confused, Blaine, I'm not exactly your biggest fan right now."

"Okay…" Blaine said taking a step back, hopeful feeling evaporating, but not standing down, "I kind of get that, it's what I expected, but what I don't get is why you're acting like everything's okay half of the time."

Finn scoffed.

"Sorry if my attitude confuses you – I guess you get a lot of things muddled in that head of yours if you're crazy enough to suspect anything badly of Kurt – but I'm only being civil to you on the pitch because I don't want to lose to Slytherin again this year. I do believe that was your fault before, wasn't it?"

"So much for nobody blaming me…" Blaine muttered darkly, regretting having started this conversation now. It was obvious that Finn had merely been polite for the team's sake – something that he should have realised prior to this talk.

Finn coughed a laugh and glared at him; "Yeah, well, I'm kind of pissed at you right now, so excuse me if I don't sing your praises."

He turned to go but Blaine foolishly called out in a new surge of anger from the Keeper's words:

"Hey, that's not fair - you don't even know what's going on here!"

He was pretty sure that Finn would have no idea, since he knew how Kurt acted when he got upset, and he could tell from the glances at him he had stolen in class that he was being exactly how he had supposed – locking himself away from everyone.

Finn rounded on the older Gryffindor Chaser again; "_No, but I know my brother_!"

The rest of the Gryffindor team looked up at the bellow from their Keeper, but hurriedly went to pack their kit away – not wanting to get in the middle of this firing squad.

Finn walked back towards the smaller boy with new rage in his heart.

"He's kind, and trustworthy and would never do anything to hurt you! I can also see that this whole…whatever the hell it is, that is going on between you two is eating him up. Don't you give a shit about that? Do you even effing care?"

Blaine pressed his lips together to try and stop a sob from rising in his throat as he tried to control the reeling in his stomach that made him feel as though he were about to go down the lurch from the top of a roller-coaster.

"Look, you don't know anything about what happened, okay? I know you think that I'm some devil or something, come to rip your brother apart, but I'm not. It's the fact that I care so much – the fact that I wish that I didn't – that is making this so. Damn. Hard."

He barely managed to choke up the last few words as he closed his eyes, raising his hands to his temples and trying to breath steady.  
>Finn stood there, watching him for a long moment, as Blaine appeared to be just as messed up at this moment as Kurt was. It was of course no competition over whose side Finn would take and to whom his loyalty lied, but he could not deny the fact that the effect on Blaine was just as staggering.<p>

He drew out a long breath between his lips, trying to supress his fury.

"All right, okay, I get it. Whatever all this is about, it is blatantly hurting both of you. I don't think you're a bad guy, Blaine, I don't. You're not my favourite person right now, and at the moment, while what you're doing is upsetting Kurt, we're not friends. I want to make that clear, because I know he hasn't done anything – whatever you may think you've heard or seen, you're wrong. I truly believe that and I hope you see it soon. I don't have to know the facts to know what Kurt is like. Now, I hope that you can step up to the plate and at least talk to him about it like a real man, because if nothing else, he deserves that. Now, as far as you and I are concerned, I will continue to play Quidditch with you, but beyond that … I trust that you're not the devil or whatever you said, but that doesn't mean I agree with what you're doing, but I'm also not about to argue with anyone if I don't know the full story. Until I do or until you two sort things out between yourselves – which I think is the only way this will be resolved - we don't talk to each other, got that?"

Blaine raised his eyes slowly to meet Finn's, having taken in his quietly controlled words and hearing the seriousness in every syllable. His face was pale and his expression sorrowful, but the vocalist nodded once to show that he understood.

Finn sighed, but just before he turned to leave he said; "I really pray that you come to your senses soon... I think you know what's real deep down."

* * *

><p>"I always thought all that hidden swimming pool business was just a joke…" Wes muttered, eyes darting towards the others who just shrugged and turned blankly back to Snape.<p>

He sighed and waved his wand, conjuring several buckets and tiny brushes.

"You shall all be working in here, cleaning every inch of this pool and this room, until it is spotless." He instructed lazily, as though he wished he were not here at all – which he probably did, even if the delight of watching them all endure the manual labour did appeal to him. "No magic."

He chucked a brush at each of them, followed by their buckets, which they had to keep from spilling on themselves.

Trent failed and was drenched.

"Now!" He commanded when they did not instantaneously burst into action, and they quickly scrambled to get to work before any other punishment was given.

It would not prove an easy task, since the room was about half the size of a football pitch, and they had not even asked how they were supposed to clean the pool entirely. Did anyone even use it? Certain remnants of dirt certainly floated in its depths, but it was hard to figure out who would spend their leisure times down here, or who even knew about it.

"How long has this been here?" Rachel tried to whisper to Mercedes, but her reply was never delivered.

"No talking!" Snape snapped. He folded his arms dramatically and paced the length of the room, sneering down at them all.

"Since Miss Berry finds it difficult to hold her tongue, she may make a start on the toilets to the left."

He jerked his head to one side where they now all noticed a door, exactly the same colour and material to the walls around it, but when seen there were obvious marks of hinges. Rachel looked miserable and aghast, but made no more complaints as she crossed over to them, fearful that any protests would get her into more trouble.

Once she was out of sight, Snape turned back to the rest of them, who continued the chore in silence, most of them looked to one another occasionally, all except Kurt, who bent his head low and simply carried on. Mercedes continued to steal glances at him, but none were returned.

The Potion's Master drew close to the countertenor, looking down at him past his hooked nose, before diving into a droning monologue.

"Since Miss Berry had the insolence to ask, and since her doing so indicates that you students have such limited knowledge of the castle you have lived in for over half a decade, I shall fill you in on the history." He told them, despite the fact that the only one who had expressed an interest in the subject was now out of the room.  
>"Godric Gryffindor, among many random and somewhat fickle interests, took a certain liking to those who lurked beneath the icy depths of our lake here at Hogwarts. Indeed, he had taken to visiting the creatures at the bottom of the water, to try and befriend them."<p>

He said so with distaste, as though he deemed such action a waste of time, and a reason to disapprove of the Hogwarts Founder.

"Helga Hufflepuff approved of his fancies, and suggested to him that it might be a nice idea to create a place in Hogwarts that would allow for certain creatures from the Lake to be welcomed into the castle amongst the others here. Not as students, but as mere visitors. They so desired those creatures to be the Merpeople, who live beneath the surface of that mass of water. Both of these Founders got carried away with what they thought to be a most-inspired idea, and decided that they would make this swimming pool. Initially it was filled with the fresh water from the Lake, but due to a slight oversight from the ancient witch and wizard, the Merpeople - who they had thought would be accepting of their invention - decided they would not take them up on their offer. They preferred to stay with their own kind, and so rejected Hufflepuff and Gryffindor, much to each of their dismay. So instead, they converted this room into a swimming pool.

"However, it is believed that when Slytherin started to use the pool, the other two cast enchantments over the place so that it could no longer be found. The exact reasoning of which is still undetermined, but ever since the pool has only been found by a few who have stumbled upon its whereabouts."

"Then why are we flaming cleaning it?" David hissed to Wes, and proceeded to be smacked over the head by the Potion's Master.

He rubbed the back of his head gingerly as Snape continued to pace the room.

"Silence, from now on!" He commanded. "And Miss Jones, please desist in your attempts to catch Mr Hummel's eye, or I shall be forced to send you to clean the toilets with Miss Berry."

Kurt looked up himself then, as a reflex action to having his name called. Mercedes gave him a tiny smile, which he returned, but it didn't touch his eyes.

* * *

><p>The three Gryffindor's had returned to their common room at long last. Their detention had ended after what had seemed like an age. Kurt had returned to his dormitory where Finn had still been up, waiting for him. He gave his brother a quick nod to show that it had not been too excruciating a task, before they both settled down to sleep.<br>Yet Kurt could not do so, he lay awake for a good hour, eyes wide open and staring up at the ceiling, so that he knew every intricacy of the pattern on the underside of his four-poster bed.

He sighed and rolled over onto his side, putting his hands up beneath his face and allowing a few stray tears to slide down his cheeks.

He wasn't sure how he was supposed to be feeling right then. Upset of course, perhaps even angry, but mostly the emotion that overwhelmed him was just frustration, because he knew that no matter what he tried to say to Blaine, the older Gryffindor would refuse to accept it.

He should be furious about this fact, but he sort of understood it. Blaine had been right – Kurt was the one person he had revealed all too. He knew his issues with trusting those close to him, because his dad never allowed him the chance to feel that he could ever be close to someone, let alone maintain a healthy relationship of trust. He had dismissed Blaine before he was able to try and form a father-son bond and that rejection bit deep into him in whatever new union was formed in his life.

He was terrified that if he did become attached, that something, anything, would pull it apart, just as what had happened with Nathan. Granted, this was no mysterious disappearance, but the possibility of Kurt turning his back and walking out on Blaine was more than the vocalist could bear. Couldn't bear the thought of being left alone again.

Yes, Kurt knew of all this, but it did not stop the exasperation at his stubborn stupidity decrease any more, or hurt any less. And it certainly didn't stop him yearn for his boyfriend at all. And he would continue to call Blaine his boyfriend, because there was no one else he could ever see filling those shoes.

_You light me up and then I fall for you._

_You lay me down and then I call for you._

Kurt raised his head and sat up, looking across over to where Blaine's empty bed lay untouched. Sheets still pristinely pressed, books on the bedside table laid exactly how they had done a week before. Then a slight bitter edge came into his voice as he softly sang the next words:

_Stumbling on reasons that are far and few_

_I let it all come down and then some for you._

He stood up, lips pursed together for a second before he peeled them open to sing the lyrics with a slight irritation in his tone, aptly conveying the infuriation he felt towards his predicament and the boy who he knew slept downstairs.

_Pretty baby, don't you leave me_

_I have been saving smiles for you._

_Pretty baby, why can't you see?_

_You're the one that I belong to._

Kurt walked over to the dormitory door, careful not to wake Finn, pulling it open and stepping out onto the landing.

He walked carefully down the steps, bare feet meeting the cold stone at each point of contact with the floor, sending a shiver through him.

_I'll be the embrace that keeps you warm_

_You're the sun that breaks the storm_

_I'll be all right and I'll sleep sound_

_As long as you keep coming 'round._

_Oh pretty baby._

Kurt just wanted to hold him, to be next to him, to drill the words into his ear if he had to. He reached the common room and touched the back of the chair that he and Blaine had sat on the first time they'd ever shared a conversation – when Blaine had helped fix his crushed fingers.

_And I know things can't last forever_

_But there are lessons that you'll never learn._

_Oh just the scent of you, it makes me hurt._

_So havin' your love makes me better. Oh_

He cast his eyes across to the small study where he knew Blaine stayed. He breathed in deeply, wishing that he could shout out to maddening would-be 7th Year, wishing he could grab him by the shoulders and shake him just as much as he wish he could grab him around the neck and pull him close to kiss him…

_Pretty baby, don't you leave me_

_I have been saving smiles for you._

_Pretty baby, why can't you see?_

_You're the one that I belong to._

_I'll be the embrace that keeps you warm_

_You're the sun that breaks the storm_

_I'll be all right and I'll sleep sound_

_As long as you keep coming_

Kurt stepped forwards, going to the door of the study and merely pressing his hand against the wood, trying to be as close to Blaine as possible and in truth, this was the closest they had come to touching in a long while. Kurt breathed in slowly.

_Can you hold me?_

_And never let go_

_When you touch me_

_And it's me that you own._

_Pretty baby,_

_oh the place that you hold in my heart._

_Would you break it apart? Again_

_Oh pretty baby_

_Pretty baby, don't you leave me_

_I have been saving smiles for you._

_Pretty baby, why can't you see?_

_You're the one that I belong to._

_I'll be the embrace that keeps you warm_

_You're the sun that breaks the storm_

_I'll be all right and I'll sleep sound_

_As long as you keep coming 'round._

The tears fell freely down his face now as he urged the older boy to pull open the door and find him there. For them both to embrace each other and forget everything. For him to let go of his insecurities and trepidations and to stop being so completely insane about it all.

_Pretty baby, why can't you see?_

_Pretty baby, don't you leave me._

_Pretty baby, why can't you see?_

_Pretty baby, don't you leave me._

_Pretty baby. My pretty baby_

_My pretty baby, don't you leave me_

"Kurt?"  
>It was not the voice that the countertenor had been hoping for, but he turned around all the same to find Mercedes staring down at him, tears sparking her eyes after having heard him sing, a layer of Goosebumps upon the skin of her arms.<p>

He swallowed and allowed himself to draw breath.

"Please… can we talk about this?"

He hesitated for a long moment, merely holding her gaze as the tears continued to roll down his cheeks.

Then he nodded his head mutely, and followed her up the staircase.

Inside the small study, curled up onto the chair as he had been for the past several days, Blaine slept soundly. However, tears were trickling down the length of his own nose until they eventually met the fabric of the pillow beneath his head. When he eventually awoke, the older Gryffindor would have no idea how they had got there.

* * *

><p>Blaine felt very strange the next day – which was saying something, as the past week had been so utterly warped and backwards as it was – but now he had an odd twisting in the pit of his stomach, like you get when your gut reaction is telling you that you're doing something wrong. Exactly what that was that could have suddenly arisen now, he had no idea, but it made him feel nauseous and on edge for the rest of the day.<p>

Things were made no better when he went to his first class of the day.

Because Karofsky was sitting in his usual seat again, a dark expression across his face as the two older boy's eyes met when Blaine entered the room. They kept their gazes fixed on each other for a long while, until Professor Flitwick began talking to Karofsky about all that he had missed, so that his attention was pulled from the icy vocalist.

The two of them continued to keep up the tension wrought between them, however, throughout the rest of the hour. Blaine was not sure if anybody else had noticed, it seemed doubtful. Sure, they realised that Karofsky had returned after such a long absence and were curious about this development, but few realised their interactions.

When the bell finally rang Blaine did not miss the fact that Kurt bolted out of the classroom before Flitwick had a chance to dismiss them, the tiny teacher muttered something, sighed, and then claimed that he too would be departing to go and see Professor Sprout before next lesson, and that the rest of them were free to leave when they pleased. Of course, all of the students took up this opportunity. All, apart from the Gryffindor and Slytherin, who caught each other's eye once more and remained seated while the other witches and wizards filed out of the classroom.

They both stood up with everyone else as they slowly packed away, but did not take their eyes off one another, as if such a break in contact made by either party would be an admittance of defeat.

Once Mercedes, the last person who exited the classroom, was out of sight, the two boys wasted no time in coming together in confrontation.

Only one table apart, Blaine leapt forward without even thinking – blinded by his own pure loathing of the boy before him – and pushed Karofsky hard in the chest.

The Slytherin stumbled backwards, much to the smaller boy's surprise, who had not expected to make such an impact, and sure that it was only because the sudden attack had caught the bully off-guard. He didn't care, Blaine blistered with rage as he could hardly believe the indignation of Karofsky to show up to class now, after so long – was there anything deliberate in the timing of this? It didn't matter, all he wanted to do was hurt him in any way possible, cause him the same pain that he had been feeling every day since he had seen him and Kurt together. He did not want to use his wand, this was not a fight of magic, it was a release of pent-up aggression that could only be let loose physically.

Karofsky lunged at him in counter-attack, but Blaine hopped out of the way, taking his small frame's heightened agility and using it to his advantage as he shoved the Slytherin again.

It was by no means in his usual character to be doing this, he was not like this on a normal day, but Karofsky was an exception – he represented everything that made Blaine's life turn sour, and there was no logic or reason behind his actions – just hatred.

Then Karofsky swung his fist, and Blaine was not quick enough. The force hit with a sickening crunch of knuckle to bone and Blaine fell backwards.

He landed on two chairs, which made a loud crashing sound as he was propelled to the floor, eye thoroughly smacked and pounding with pain as the vocalist let out a yell.

"_What the hell?"_

Mercedes' voice interrupted the frenzy of the enraged and betrayed and they both looked up at her, Blaine's hand cradling one eye, but managing to look at her outraged expression through the other.

She stormed up to Karofsky – she was far below his height, but her glare at that moment was enough to turn even the most brawling army sergeant into a knee-trembling mess.

"You best get your nasty ass outta here before someone else comes along and expels you faster than your pea-brain can process, got it?"

Karofsky slammed his fist into the table, but then calmed his breath slightly looking directly at Blaine. He swallowed hard and a half-pitiful expression crossed his eyes.

"You're mad, you know that? You're freaking mad." He said, panting heavily. "He'd never even go near me, you lunatic, he wants you… can't for the life of me think why."

With that he wiped his hand across his mouth and turned his head away so they could no longer see his face and he could storm out of the classroom, the students walking in the hallway dispersed quickly as he shot through them.

"Thanks," Blaine said, pushing himself up, still with one hand over his newly received injury, and dusting himself off, staring after the Slytherin and trying to process what he had just said. Was it true? Could he dare to believe the words of that brute?

Mercedes folded her arms and stared deafly at him, not allowing his thoughts to deepen further; "Don't think that I am through with you either. What on _earth_ do you think you're doing? What, did you lose your mind in that Halloween game or something?"

Blaine picked up the two chairs with his free hand and did not look at her; "Can we not?"

"Oh hell no, we're getting into this whether you like it or not. Sit down!" Her command was so fierce that Blaine had carried it out before knowing what he was doing. He looked up at her with a slightly frightened expression, wincing against his stinging eye.

"You seriously need to sort yourself out – what if you'd been caught by a teacher instead of me? What if Flitwick had seen you? I hope that a couple cheap punches would have been worth it, because no matter what's going on with you and Kurt right now, that by no means justifies your crazy attitude at the moment."

Mercedes' hands were on her hips now, her voice loud and reprimanding.

"Mercedes, with all due respect, you don't even know what's going on between me and Kurt, so if you don't mind-"

"For your information, short stop, I _do_ know," Blaine looked up at her, his one eyebrow that was visible rising into his hairline. "Yeah, Kurt told me everything, so don't play the misunderstood card with me, because from what I can tell, you're the one who hasn't quite got the correct grasp on things."

"What did he say to you?" Blaine asked, eager for information now, his confusion at the situation had taken over his initial fury at Kurt by now – and with the new words from his bully-turned-admirer still burning in his mind he was racked with urgency to discover more.

Mercedes rolled her eyes, "Why don't you actually go and ask him yourself? I'm not playing owl for you two, all right? All I know is that you over reacted, and you've got some serious ground to make up here. And throwing punches at idiotic Slytherins isn't going to help anything right now."

"Technically, he punched me," Blaine muttered, but when he saw her nostrils flare he quickly amended; "But, yeah, okay. That was stupid..."

"You're damn right it was." She took a deep breath and looked down at him; "Please, Blaine, you have to realise how completely nuts this all is don't you?"

Blaine shuffled uncomfortably in his seat; "I know what I saw."

"No, you _think_ you know. You think that you saw something that you've been afraid would happen – that you've been obsessing over – it doesn't take a genius to work it out." Mercedes said when he gawped at her, wide-eyed. "Come on, I may not be a Ravenclaw, but that doesn't mean I can't spot a jealous moron when I see one."

Blaine frowned, "Hey, it's not like I totally invented the whole thing – you've_ seen_ the way he looks at Kurt."

Mercedes threw her hands in the air in exasperation. "Not as much as I've seen the way _Kurt_ looks at _you_! Honestly? You're sitting here and telling me that you don't see that? Then you really are dumb. Even Karofsky just said so himself for Christ's sake! Why are you so blind to it?"

Blaine got to his feet, a little angry again, tears starting to burn in the back of his eyes.

Mercedes held out her hands. "Calm down, okay? I'm just trying to get through to you." She steadied her voice again and said in a far more motherly tone. "Do you know that Kurt isn't actually mad at you right now? God knows why, I sure as hell would be, but he isn't. He's just upset. Do you know why that is? Because he thinks that the reason you're so bent out of shape about this whole thing is because you're so goddamn afraid of getting hurt. Of losing people. Of being left alone. Well, look around you Blaine and ask yourself who exactly is on your side with this? Not me or Finn or Rachel, that's for sure. Talked to Wes, David and Trent recently? Because they're not agreeing with you either. But ignore all of them, because that's not what's really important here. You're the most afraid of losing Kurt, and yet that is exactly what you're going to do. You may still have him for a short while, but if you keep this up – trying to beat up other students and flying off the rails – he's not gonna stick around, and you and I both know that he is far too much to lose."

Blaine felt like he needed air, it was as though the room had turned into a vacuum, sucking out all oxygen from his lungs as his body shook slightly, so that it was barely visible, yet he felt his blood run thin and his body weaken.

"But I saw them together… they were so close and… and I know-"

"What do you know, Blaine? Think about it. _Who _do you know? You know him, Blaine. Please, nothing I say is going to make you feel any differently, but just think about who it is you're accusing here. He thinks more highly of you than anyone else in the world, and look at what you're putting on him. You may be afraid of getting hurt, but by acting on that you know the person who you're really hurting. I know what I'm saying isn't new information to you, Blaine, you've known all along, I'm just trying to make you wake up and realise it. Go and talk to him – for everyone's sake."

Mercedes straightened up and walked back over to the door that led out of the Charms classroom.

"Just think about it."  
>Once Mercedes had exited the room for the second time, Blaine sat frozen for a long time as he stared out into an unfocused view. He thought about it. About what he had said, what he had done, how he had been acting. How he had just been towards Karofsky. What he had done to Kurt. What Mercedes and the Slytherin had just said to him.<p>

He felt dazed and his head span like a spinning top, causing him to lose focus of the room as he shut his eyes tight.

He needed to get out of there – not least because Flitwick would be back at any moment and he hardly needed to be bombarded with questions as to why he had not moved along to his next lesson yet.

But Blaine never made it to Muggle Studies that morning.

The thought didn't even cross his mind as he walked out of the classroom, completely oblivious to all of those around him, it was as though they blended into the walls, evaporated into the stone as he travelled through the corridor, seemingly alone.

He put a hand to his temples and pressed, hoping the pressure would bring forth some clarification, but everything seemed so blurred, as though a veil hung over some concrete information that he needed to grasp, but that this veil was unyielding and would not let him pass.

He blinked and stared wildly around him, hoping that something would shoot towards his periphery and strike him with a solid truth.

And that was when he saw Nathan.

It was out the corner of his eye, so brief that he almost missed him entirely, but he had known his brother's face like he knew his own, in fact he probably knew it better, it having been etched into his memories for eternity.

His heart stopped along with the flow through his lungs as he pulled up short, feeling an ice-cold chill run down the length of his body as he turned his head as if in slow motion towards where he had seen that face.

The twinkling eyes caught him like a chokehold once more, peering through a crack in a door where no other took any notice.

Blaine was at the door in a heartbeat, pulse thudding in his ears and throat feeling as though it were closing up as he reached his fingertips, trembling, towards the handle, and wrenched open the door.

But no figure stood before him.

No solid person was beyond the door.

Merely a shimmering reflective surface at the far end of the room, just peeking out from the top right hand corner, where the white sheet that covered the great mass had fallen off to reveal this fraction.

Blaine took hurried steps along the floor, which seemed to stretch out, lengthening his journey as though with the intent to torture his curiosity and pull towards what he hoped would reveal his long-lost brother.

He finally reached the cloaked object and he took a fistful of white sheet and yanked it off of it with a sweeping flourish.

The shimmering surface had belonged to a huge mirror. One of the grandest mirrors that Blaine had ever seen with an arch on the top, which beheld an inscription:

_Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi_

If Blaine had taken in this writing he would not have understood its meaning, but there was no possible way of him drawing his eyes away from the sight that met his eyes at the place where his sole reflection should have stood.

Because his body did not stand alone within the mirror.

He was there, right in the centre, exactly as he should be, right down to his upturned collar and scuffed sleeves that must have been a result of his encounter with Karofsky earlier, yet he made no attempt to readjust himself. He was far too distracted by the figure next to him within the mirror.

A figure with similar dark hair, a little shorter than his own, with brown eyes the exact same shape but without so illuminating a golden hint, with the exact same shaped face and a slightly thinner nose and wider lips and a scar by his eyebrows, but more or less the same. The figure, who had previously stood a couple of heads taller than Blaine, now was only one, with still a reasonable distance.

The younger brother's face turned to an expression of impossible shock, colour flushing from his face and air sucked from his lungs as he reached his hand out to the side where Nathan should have been, where on his reflection he touched his arm, yet in reality no contact was made.

Because his older brother was not truly there, he only existed within the mirror. He couldn't grasp the concept. He felt weak, as though the bones had been removed from his body, or merely worn now to thin splinters to that he could hardly remain standing. What was this? Was this real? He tried to reach out his hand towards the mirror now, but what met his fingertips was the cold surface that would have been expected, no flesh truly stood beyond it. He yet out a strangled noise of frustration, willing his hand to go through the mirror, for the boy behind it to be there. To be real.

While Blaine's head whizzed around the idea that this boy was finally before his eyes again, so close and as true to his memory that he almost felt his presence, and so cruelly presented so that it should cause him to despair, he suddenly noticed something else emerging from the side where Nathan stood.

Another boy, in-between the two boy's heights, with a lighter brown hair, paler skin and bright blue eyes entered upon the picture.

Blaine watched in amazement as the reflection of Nathan turned towards this newcomer, a grin on his face, and embraced him.

Then the pale-skinned boy went around the older brother to stand beside Blaine, a content smile on his face as the three Gryffindors stood together…

And that was when Blaine ran.

Away from the image that he would have thought himself unable to tear his eyes from, and with only one thought now racing through his head. Clarification finally having been granted.

* * *

><p>Kurt had gone back to his dormitory for his free period – wanting to get away from the clamour of students that swarmed every nook and cranny of Hogwarts during the day. He just couldn't deal with it all at the moment, instead he had decided to devote an hour on his own, sorting through the hem lines of his robes to see if he could not make them slightly more 'Kurt'. He had been trying at this task for days, but it was proving difficult – probably because he didn't feel so much like himself these days.<p>

He crossed over to the windowsill and stroked Pavarotti's head warmly, since he was perched beside it. The small bird nuzzled him and he smiled slightly.  
>"At least you still love me, right?" He sighed as the tiny owl hooted and hopped forward to shake his head towards the door.<p>

"What?" He asked, though the bird could not reply.

Pavarotti repeated the action.

"Nobody's coming, you silly thing, everybody else has lessons now – thank God." He cared for his brother a lot, but Finn being around right now would not improve his mood – he wasn't even sure if anything could any more.

He faced the window once more, looking out at the grounds of Hogwarts, empty as class was in session and sighed. It truly was a beautiful place.

Just then a slam sounded behind him.

He whirled around just in time to see the door reverberate slightly after its impact with the wall, as it had been pushed open rather forcefully by the boy who now stood in the frame.

Their eyes connected for a fraction of a second before Blaine had taken only two strides across the room to meet Kurt, before the younger boy even had time to react to his sudden appearance.

Before he knew what was happening, Blaine had his face between his hands and their hungry lips found each other. Kurt dropped the sewing pin he had been holding and it clattered to the ground as he pressed his hands against Blaine's chest, feeling his warm skin heat into his palms and the thud of his heart beat pound against his fingertips.

"I'm sorry…so sorry…God, Kurt…I'm sorry…I was so stupid." Kurt caught the fervent words against his mouth every time the two of them parted by millimetres for a couple of breathless seconds.

His head felt dizzy as he wrapped his hands around Blaine's neck, not thinking, just wanting him as close to him as was possible. Feeling his skin, his heat, his breath, his lips. Every touch sent fireworks through Kurt's body as the longing that had been pent up in his heart released itself in a fit of passion as the two boys clung to one another, not wanting to let go ever again.

"I'm sorry too," He whispered back, interrupting Blaine's incessant apologies.

At that, Blaine brought his hands back up to Kurt's face and held it firmly between his palms.

"No… No, Kurt, this is _all_ my fault, okay? I was moronic and God… what I did… it was horrible. And unforgivable." He said the words so ferociously that Kurt was slightly taken aback.

He was about to respond with stern protests until he caught sight of Blaine's eye and gasped.

A purpled bruise had already begun to form beneath it.

"Blaine…what happened?" He looked up in shock at the older Gryffindor, who averted his gaze, having almost forgotten about his latest encounter with the thuggish Slytherin, and the countertenor's face crumpled; "…You didn't…"

"Yes," Blaine confessed, looking utterly ashamed of himself as he bit his lip guiltily. "I'm sorry… Jesus, I'll just add it to the list of all the things I am sorry for. I know it was wrong but… it's fine, that right there's the worst of it – Mercedes tore us apart before anything else happened."

Kurt cocked his head to one side, it was still inches away from Blaine's so that he could feel the ragged breath against his face. Somehow, though he would never quite fathom how, he managed to stay focused.

"…You started it?"

Blaine gave him a sickening expression, as his eyebrows knit together.

He nodded solemnly.

Kurt took a deep breath; "You really are an idiot."

Blaine's eyes tightened and his jaw clenched as he fumbled through his next words:

"I'll… I'll go if you want me to… I shouldn't think… this isn't fair on you, after what I did… I shouldn't have just - I came up here to just talk to you, but then I saw you and… I'm sorry, I'll go."

He tried to move away, but Kurt's left hand slid down his arm to catch his wrist and pull him back to where he had been in such close proximity to the younger boy.

He gazed wide-eyed at Kurt in confusion, but he said nothing, he merely raised his other hand to trace the bruise with just a brush of his fingertips, so that it couldn't possibly hurt Blaine. Then he tugged on his hand once more, so that their faces were less than an inch apart and he brought his lips to the wound.

He drew back and stared at him for a moment.

"I said you were an idiot; I didn't say that I wanted you to go."

And then both of their lips crashed together again.

Blaine wrapped both of his arms around Kurt, trying to compress any space between them, desperate to be as close as possible after all the wasted time apart, time where he could have been touching and kissing him. Time not worth thinking about – where he truly must have lost his sanity.

Kurt found his hands soon nestled in Blaine's hair and he rested his forehead against his boyfriend's for a moment and gazed at those brilliantly golden-brown eyes, so that they could not miss the intensity of his words;  
>"I never wanted him, Blaine. How could I? I want you. I've always wanted you. I <em>need<em> you."

That did it.

Blaine could not have brought their lips together again fast enough, as his shoulders hunched and back tensed as he kissed Kurt with every grain of energy he had, exuding fierce sparks of an unexplained magic onto the boy who he would forever gravitate towards.

Because they did need each other, they needed each other like Oxygen, or the ground they walked on, to prevent themselves from falling through the cracks that opened up in the surface of the earth. But they did not need to talk, they did not even need to sing to convey their feelings this time, they just had to feel every last inch of each other, feel the burning fire between them. It was confirmation enough – to know that all they yearned for was the other as they forgot where they were. Forgot who they were. Forgot their names, as they were thrown together in a tangle of hands, mouths and bodies.

Bodies that soon found themselves lain down on Kurt's bed together.

The temperature of the room seemed to have increased alarmingly, or that was sure what it felt like from Kurt's perspective, it was almost feverishly hot as the two boys were pressed together, closing every possible space between them.

"He- Oh, Jesus!"

Both boys looked up sharply as they saw, stood in the doorway of their dormitory, a third member of their housing.

Finn's hand flew over his eyes as he cursed.

Blaine and Kurt sprang apart suddenly, Blaine almost falling off of the bed as he looked wildly at the tall boy, dazed as though he couldn't quite recall his identity at all.

Finn peeked through his fingers to check that they had parted and he groaned. "Christ, I'm happy for you guys and all, but could you just please remember that I do live here too?"

* * *

><p>Hello Readers,<p>

Yeah I know, I know, how could I stop it there etc. etc. but you know what? Just watch this weeks episode and I'm sure you'll get over the fact that Finn walked in :P How are you all this fine evening? Well, I say evening, this may very well be morning or afternoon or whatever depending on where you're from. Isn't it weird that people are reading this on separate continents? Fun times.

Yeah, I know, I should come to terms with the wonders of the internet one day, but until then I will just be easily impressed.

So I wrote this inanely long chapter for you guys, so you best appreciate it, especially as Kurt and Blaine are happy and laughing again - hooraaaay! What? I couldn't keep them apart for THAT long. Also, no, hey aren't going to have another dramatic split. And no, that isn't a major spoiler, because the upcoming events are going to turn this story on its head in an entirely different way... And nope, I ain't telling y'all nuffink.

Mwahahahahaha

Thanks for reading, keep reviewing, and I don't even have to tell you to carry on watching, because you'll undoubtedly be doing that without my instruction.


	31. Chapter 30: Invitation

Chapter Thirty: Invitation

* * *

><p>Kurt and Blaine sat amongst the others in the Great Hall again. Few questions had been asked about their reunion, most of their friends were just thankful that the madness was over and they could hardly argue with the looks of joy emanating from both of their faces.<p>

Barely a second went by when the two were not holding hands, leant against one another, embracing, or had some form of contact sustained between them. They still felt a thrill each time, however, as nothing could compare to the pull they had towards the other after such a tortuous separation and now they couldn't help but crave to be by each other's side.

At this moment in particular, Kurt's head was resting lightly against Blaine's shoulder as he chewed on his toast while the older Gryffindor was looking down at him, a subtle yet radiant smile on his lips as he fiddled with the bow tie around Kurt's neck. It was crimson, lined with gold stitching.

"I'm not sure the teachers are going to approve of your newly adapted school tie," He remarked fondly.

Kurt shrugged, "Bow ties are cool. I made it last night and I like it. Seems my creative flare returned to me at last."

Blaine nuzzled his nose into Kurt's hair and kissed the top of his head. "Well, I think it's adorable."

"That is the look I go for," Kurt said sarcastically but with a laugh as he took Blaine's hand beneath the table.

"Do you mind, some of us are trying to keep down our food, and it's increasingly difficult when you two are being this nauseating." Wes muttered, wolfing down his eggs and thus proving he wasn't actually having any digestive problem. The Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs (including Brittany who had kind of joined their ranks now due to her friendship with Trent) had invaded the Gryffindor table yet again for breakfast.

Blaine just raised his head to stick his tongue out at the cheeky 7th Year, who pulled a sneering face in return before flicking peas at the revisted-6th Year.

The only one missing was Rachel, who was sitting at the far end of the Slytherin table with Jesse, away from the other members of the house, their heads together in impassioned whispers.

Finn couldn't help but look over every 30 seconds or so, appearing even more moody every time he returned his attention to those sitting around him. Kurt put a comforting hand on his brother's shoulder and smiled weakly. Finn grimaced and pushed away his plate, suddenly not very hungry.

Just then a flapping of wings and several hoots broke the calmness of the Great Hall as they all looked up to see the morning's post arrive.

Hundreds of birds swooped in from outside and Kurt raised his head from Blaine's shoulder to watch as Pavarotti soared towards him.

He did not carry anything, merely bounced around Kurt's head a few times to greet him. He had been very hyperactive recently. It was odd, as Kurt had been worried that he had been ill over the past couple of weeks, but his personality was lifted back to its previous excitable self and Kurt laughed as the bird buried its head into the pocket of his robes.

Blaine chuckled and pulled the tiny owl out of the pocket, letting him sit on his hand as he tweeted happily, before nipping Blaine on the nose and settling down into the bread basket for a snooze.

"Ouch!" Blaine said, rubbing it.

Kurt merely grinned; "I think he likes you."

"Funny way of showing it," He grumbled, but Kurt merely leant forward and kissed the tip of his nose where his wound lay.

"Ugh," Wes complained again, hiding his face behind his edition of the Daily Prophet which he had just had delivered to him.

Just then, Blaine ripped the paper from his hand.

"Ahhh! What the hell is wrong with you?" He demanded, outraged, but Blaine did not pay him any attention, he was vigorously scanning the main article on the front page.

A few of their friends looked around the Hall, which they now all noticed was abuzz with news.

Kurt anxiously looked at Blaine who had suddenly gone very quiet, and Kurt was almost certain that he wasn't breathing.

On the front cover of The Prophet there stood a picture of a witch. She wore a mug shot sign around her neck, which was obscured slightly by her main of wild black hair, framing her gaunt face, centralised by a pair of heavily lidded eyes.

The headline simply read:

_Bellatrix Lestrange escapes Azkaban_.

Kurt gazed at his boyfriend who suddenly shoved the paper away, putting a hand to his hairline and brushing it back furtively.

"Are you okay?" He whispered, all though the simple answer was obvious.

Blaine pursed his lips.

"Jesus, I didn't even think that was possible. How did she escape? She must have been maximum security…surely?" Finn asked, reading the paper now and looking up at them all.

"After what she did to the Longbottom's – I hope so." Mercedes muttered, shuddering slightly. Kurt noticed how the three 7th Years were glancing at Blaine warily and he knew there was something, besides the general shock and horror that had spread over the school from this news, that was bothering the vocalist.

He intertwined their fingers and squeezed, whispering; "Blaine, what's going on?"

He shook his head. "It's nothing, or you know, probably means nothing."

"Tell me," Kurt said softly, stroking his thumb over the surface of the skin on his hand comfortingly.

Blaine lifted his head to look at Kurt. "My parents were the ones who caught Bellatrix and her husband when she got sent to Azkaban, I don't know if it means anything, but she isn't exactly the most forgiving of witches – and that's a pretty major offence, I'd imagine."

Kurt grimaced and curled an arm around Blaine's waste, hugging himself to the older boy.

"They'll be fine, they can handle themselves, I'm sure the Ministry will be aware and find ways to protect them if they think that they are in any danger."

Blaine nodded, "Yeah, like I said, it's nothing really - I'm probably just over reacting."

"Does that a lot, doesn't he, Kurt?" Wes asked, winking and earning a scowl from his friend. Trent shook his head silently, indicating that now was not the time.

"How long has she been in Azkaban for now?" Trent then asked, leaning forwards to join the conversation in a hushed tone as everyone around them huddled together in discussion.

"Six years or something?" David replied, looking very sombre. "Hold on, yeah, that's what the Prophet says, near around."

"How though? Nobody escapes Azkaban – it's swarming with dementors." Mercedes replied, looking inquisitively at David – their recent discomfort taken over by the fresh drama.

Even so, David seemed delighted that she was willing to divulge in direct conversation; "Dementors aren't very loyal creatures, they're mostly dark beings. Everyone knows that if You Know Who returned they'd be far more lightly to convert to his side than to ally themselves with us. Perhaps they were lax on her – she is one of his more devoted servants."

"Don't the Ministry have control over them?" She asked, brow furrowed in worry as she leant closer, absorbed in the conversation.

David shrugged. "Does anyone really know how to control a dementor…?"

Mercedes bit her lip then looked up at the rest of them. The whole room seemed to have become very still. Even the 7th Year boys had given up their teasing of the newly reunited pair, now that the reality of the situation began to settle in. If people could escape from Azkaban now, who knew what insanity would ensue.

A foul atmosphere had crept over the room like stale breath, seeping terror and concern into what would have been a lovely day…

Finn looked up again to where Rachel sat, except now she was staring up at their table too, an equal reaction of dread shaping her features as her eyes quickly fluttered downward again, to carry on talking to Jesse about it, just like everyone else.

"I feel sick. I need pancakes. My mum always makes me pancakes to help me feel better when I'm sick. She draws a smiley face on them. I throw up later, but for a while I feel better." Brittany said softly while the others exchanged gloomy expressions.

Wes slammed his hands on the table then. "Let's not dwell on this."

"Kind of hard not to…" Blaine muttered darkly, his mind far off in thought after overhearing David and Mercedes' insights.

"No, but sitting around here worrying ourselves isn't going to help matters. We students aren't the ones who can act on these types of things, we have to leave our faith in the aurors and the great wizards and witches of our age to protect us, they have done so well ever since You Know Who's downfall, and we have to trust they'll continue to do so. It's Christmas soon, guys, it's meant to be a time for festivities, not trouble and fears. We can't do anything about what may or may not happen, so let's make the best of the time we have now."

They all gawped at him, wide eyes and mouths hanging open like goldfish.

Kurt shook his head; "I think I'm more fearful of the fact that you just said something reasonably sensible…"

Wes grinned and stuffed a piece of bacon into his mouth; "Just to be clear; I've always had a better outlook on life than the rest of you, this is just you realising it. I'm actually the reasonable member of our friendship group, it just takes a while to notice."

Several of them snorted and Wes felt successful in decreasing the ominous tension that had cast a shadow over them all. He clapped his hands together; "So, what's everyone doing for Christmas?"

"Well, err… I'm going skiing with my parents," David said, still a little cautious with the light-hearted change of subject, but still glancing at Mercedes; "My aunts a muggle, and she says it's one of their best sports, so we decided to give it a go."

"What is it?" Mercedes asked.

"Apparently you strap planks of wood to your feet and slide down a hill." He answered simply, causing her to raise her eyebrow suspiciously.

"I'll be looking forward to a fun-packed Christmas of sitting around the table not talking to each other," Blaine said in a joking tone, all though he frowned slightly as he said it.

"Kurt and I are going home to have Christmas with my mum and Burt like last year. Kind of just a quiet family time I guess. Was good last time, wasn't it?" Finn asked.

Kurt smiled slightly at his brother. It had been an incredibly odd experience, spending the holiday with others, rather than just his Dad, but he had to admit that once he had got over the initial unfamiliarity, he had enjoyed himself and he nodded.

"Well, I'm staying here. My mums going off on holiday with her new fella so I am going to rule the school," Wes grinned, eating yet more bacon as if his stomach never filled.

They shook their heads disparagingly; Wes' mother changed boyfriends faster than she did pairs of socks, perhaps it had disrupted her son on some level, but in all honesty he never seemed all too bothered by the lifestyle she led, since he preferred to do his own thing anyway.

Finn looked up then to see Rachel walk out of the room by herself, Jesse remaining at the Slytherin table. He was confused by this as he glanced at the Seeker, but Jesse did not appear perturbed by this departure, he had his nose deep in The Prophet again and Finn suddenly stood up.

"I…Err, need to go get my…calculator… for class." He said rather blustered before rushing down the aisle.

They all raised their eyebrows.  
>"What's a calculator?" Brittany asked.<p>

"It's a muggle tool that they use to do maths…" Kurt answered.

"Wait, Brittany, I thought you were muggleborn too?" Trent asked.

"I am."

Kurt merely smiled up at his brother's distancing back, having seen Rachel exit just a moment ago.

Blaine ducked his head to whisper; "Do you want to go and take a walk outside before class?"

His words were spoken in a low tone, causing their admittance to tickle the hairs on the back of his neck pleasantly.

Kurt nodded, not being able to formulate a response at that moment, and the two boys stood up from the table again, bidding the others farewell before they also left the group.

Wes scoffed, "If I'm honest, I am a little insulted they didn't ask me to come along with them."

"Didn't know you were into that sort of thing," David said casually, looking over the top of the paper and wiggling his eyebrows while the other three sniggered.

So Wes chucked his last piece of bacon at his forehead.

* * *

><p>"Rachel!"<p>

Finn called after the tiny brunette but she carried on walking so that he had to sprint to finally catch up to her. Her arms were folded as he fell into step with her.

"Can't talk right now, Finn, I have to go and speak to Professor Binns about my last essay." She said hurriedly.

"I need to talk to you; can't it wait?" He asked urgently.

"No." She said abruptly. There was a slight pause before curiosity got the better of her… "Why do you need to talk to me?"

He had to jog to keep up with her crazily fast-paced strides. For such a small person, she sure could cover a great deal of distance in a short space of time.

"Well, you haven't exactly spoken to me at all since Halloween, in fact it's not even me, you've been staying away from us all and I want to know why? Is that just to avoid me or is Jesse locking you behind bars from all of your friends now?"

Rachel turned her head to one side so that he could not read her guilty expression; "Jesse has nothing to do with it. Me keeping away is my idea."

"Why?" Finn asked, unable to fathom an answer to that question. Rachel may be selfish sometimes, but she was a loyal friend, or at least had been bettering herself in that area in recent times.

"I'm not getting into it now. Not here." She said, trying to quicken her pace, but the tall Gryffindor boy had had enough now.

He grabbed her by the hand and stopped so that she was forced to come to a halt with him, she tried to pull her hand away without looking at him, but failed.

She looked up with furious eyes.

"Let me go!"

Finn let go.

She held her hand close to her chest, not because it was hurt, but merely to stop him from preventing her leaving again.

And yet she remained stationary as she looked up into his face, which was half irritated and half confused.

"This is to do with me, isn't it? Why you're shutting everyone out. Because you want to avoid me and by doing so you need to give the others the same treatment."

"That's a bit of a narcissistic a conclusion to draw, is it not?" Rachel scowled.

"I didn't hear you say it was an incorrect one." Finn said in a quiet voice.

Rachel gazed up into his eyes with a guilty expression, looking utterly miserable.

"Well, far from that being a stupid idea anyway, seeing as none of them deserve it in the slightest, I don't really see what I have done to earn that either. I didn't force you into anything, Rachel; I merely showed you my side and left it up to you. If you've made your bed then you lay in it, but don't stroll around here and act as though I am the bad guy here for giving you an alternative option – regardless of the fact that you chose to ignore it."

Rachel stared at him a moment, she had never heard him be so articulate and she had a sneaking suspicion that this was not the first time he had chosen to speak these words, that perhaps he had been thinking of them since their distance from one another.

It was true, he had not pressured her into any decision, in fact opposed to Jesse he had been the more forgiving about her being caught between them, even though he probably had more call to be unreasonable about it; he was bearing the raw end of the deal. Rachel hardly knew herself how to deal with having two guys fighting over her, when she had deemed herself unlikely to entice just one. The whole situation had been more than baffling, and yet she was concrete in her decision, especially now that she knew the truth…

She fixed Finn with a steely glare, urged on my this new confidence in her actions; "Don't play the innocent card, Finn, I know, okay. I know everything. Jesse told me."

She stared up at him with meaningful eyes after having glanced left and right to make sure that nobody was near by.

They were alone.

Finn gazed down at her, face falling as his eyes widened and he licked his lips. At first she assumed that he was feeling nervous due to being discovered, but then his jaw tightened.

"I'm going to kill him." He snarled, turning around towards the direction of the Great Hall again.

But this time it was Rachel who caught his arm, having to plant her entire weight into the ground to prevent his movements.

He whirled around and the two squared up to one another.

"You leave him alone! You shouldn't be keeping it a secret Finn!" Rachel yelled. "I can't believe I ever trusted you… I thought you were a decent guy - not a liar!"

"You really are clueless, you know that? Can you not see the poison he is bleeding into your brain?" Finn snapped furiously, face reddening.

"Why didn't you tell me? Tell us? You say I'm the one who has a bad attitude towards my friends! Do you think so little of us? Or was this just another thing on your grand scheme to try and win me over? Didn't think I'd go for you if I knew about Quinn?"

These weren't her words. They were Jesse's.

"Don't, Rachel, don't." He warned.

"What? Don't tell you what you already know? What you've been keeping from us all? How could you, Finn? When did it even happen? How long have you even known?"

"_It's not my freaking baby_!" Finn suddenly bellowed, spit flying from his mouth in his rage as he threw his hands out before him in anger. "It's Jesse's baby. Jesse's. Not mine."

Rachel took a step back, feeling as though her ears had just popped as her mouth fell open and her brow scrunched up in puzzlement.

She tried to ask 'what?' but the word wouldn't form on her lips.

Finn understood all the same.

He took a deep breath and put his hands to his temples. He shouldn't have said that. Fuck. What had he done? That wasn't his secret to tell.

He looked up at Rachel. He couldn't hold it from her now. There was little point. He could see from her face that she believed it. He had no idea why – there was no solid reason why she would be so willing to choose his side over her boyfriend's, no reason why she should listen to him at all right now. But she had. And she believed it; the truth of it all was there behind her brown eyes.

He exhaled deeply and said in a far softer tone:

"I never slept with Quinn. Hell, I never even dated Quinn… or anything like that. Last year, just after Christmas – I found her crying in the girl's toilets. Well, not in there – I wasn't in there. But just as she came out. It was after Quidditch and no one else was in the castle. Otherwise I'd never had noticed. She was kind of…you know… and she just ended up spilling everything."

Rachel did not speak but she stepped back again to lean against the wall for support. Finn tried to walk forwards, cutting off his explanation to try and help, but she held out a hand, closed her eyes, and then gestured for him to continue.

He hesitated, but did so:

"They dated last year. They met over last summer and then met up more once they were at Hogwarts again. They had a couple issues. He didn't want to be exclusive… wanted to keep them a secret… not because he was ashamed of her, she said, and I believe it because nobody would want to hide Quinn… but – but I don't know, he didn't want the relationship hassle or whatever. Wanted to focus on himself, she said… seemed to really like her though, just didn't want anyone else in their business… Then she got pregnant. That's when I found her. She didn't want to tell him, but I said she should… but before she got the chance he broke up with her."

Rachel stared up at him, trying to comprehend, to process. Listening intently, if slightly dizzily, to his usual fumble of words. Far more familiar Finn.

"See, he had seen us together – on a couple occasions I guess, when I was talking to her about it. I only realised that part recently when he said to me that I had stolen her from him – right before he told you, I'm guessing… anyway… I kind of figured that's what had happened. Of course before now I thought he'd just been an ass, especially when he could see she was clearly pregnant. I thought he must have known… given the timing, but now I see that he assumed she'd been cheating on him with me… so he left her. And – and I don't know, Rachel, but I think he got together with you to make her jealous… and to get back at me. Because he knew. I told you that I never liked him, Rachel, that's because he used to always taunt me about you… before upcoming matches… tried to throw me off my game. Always kinda got to me… so he knew being with you was the prefect way to hurt me. I'm sorry – I didn't know. I didn't know at the time that that may have been it, because I didn't think that was what he thought of Quinn and me… I still don't know if he knows. Well, I'm sure he does… he just hasn't admitted it to himself. Just, don't be mad at Quinn at least… none of this was her fault… I think she thought the same as I did – I haven't had a chance to tell her my new theory yet. I don't even know if that's what went down, but from what he said to me… I really think that it is. I'm so sorry Rachel… Are you okay?"

Finn had finally finished and watched as tears began to pour down over the tiny Gryffindor's face.

He tried to step forward in an attempt to comfort her, but she stepped back.

"I… I need some air. Sorry, Finn. Thanks for telling me. But I have to go…"

And with that she raised a hand to her face and fled out of the doors that led to Hogwarts grounds.

Leaving Finn feeling a terrible gut wrenching pain in the pit of his stomach as he watched her fade into the daylight.

* * *

><p>Kurt and Blaine walked hand in hand along the luscious green grass that was crunchy from their earlier visit from Jack Frost that morning. The air was cold and so the two boys were wrapped up warm against the winter weather, but still feeling the other's heat through their gloves.<p>

Blaine sighed and then took his hand out of Kurt's to then proceed to weave it around his waist, hugging him close to him so that they could share one another's warmth. Kurt snuggled into his side, feeling wholly peaceful.

They carried on walking for a little while until they reached the bridge, its great stone pillars dusted with an icy sugared sprinkle that made it shimmer in the dim sunlight that had only just risen.

They had gotten about halfway down the bridge when Blaine suddenly stopped. Kurt didn't realise for a second, and attempted to carry on walking, but Blaine held onto his arm and tugged him back, causing the countertenor to fall back and onto his waiting lips.

Blaine delved deeply into the kiss, hands embracing Kurt's neck as the younger Gryffindor got over his surprise with a slight waving of his arms before he found them held firmly around the Chaser's back.

Before he could gather his thoughts, he found his own back pressed up against the stone pillar so that flecks of ice fell onto his hair and shoulders, but that hardly mattered as Blaine began to kiss a line from beneath his ear, along his jawline, down to the base of his throat.

Kurt let out a small gasp, but then he did something the vocalist had not expected.

He pushed him away suddenly.

Blaine looked up, still a little breathless, with a face of confusion, hurt and concerned that he had done something to upset him.

"Sorry, umm, give me a second," Kurt said as he steadied his own breath. He met Blaine's eyes then, looking embarrassed; "Sorry."

"What are you sorry for?" Blaine asked, taking a step forwards now that he was sure that he wouldn't be rebuffed and taking Kurt's hand again. "Did I do something?"

"No… Well, I guess kind of – but it's not your fault."

"Okay…" Blaine said, eyeing him suspiciously; "You're losing me a little here, Kurt."

The countertenor took a deep breath.

"You know how the other day, after we made up, and we were… when Finn walked in."

He looked a little flustered as he said this and Blaine couldn't help but grin, half from the memory and half from the adorable expression written across his face.

"It rings a bell," He said in a low tone.

"Right, well, it kind of got a bit…heated there for a moment. And I'm not sure if I'm totally okay with that – yet. Because, it's all a bit new, and I'm not very good at this kind of thing. I don't know what I'm doing here."

Blaine watched as Kurt tripped over each word in a hurry to get each one out, as if he had been locking away this issue for quite a long time.

Blaine reached up and brushed away the hair that had fallen down over Kurt's eyes; it had become dampened by the ice.

"Kurt… are you talking about sex?"

The blunt question seemed to panic him further and he swallowed and could do nothing but nod once and drop his head so that his eyes fixed firmly on the floor.

But Blaine simply laughed lightly and tucked one hand underneath Kurt's chin, lifting it back up to meet his gaze.

"It's okay, Kurt, I'm not asking you to do anything. I mean, this is me you're talking to – I am just as out of my depth here as you are, remember?"

Kurt did and he felt a lot more relaxed by the idea as his face seemed to calm and even permitted a smile to cross his features.

"I don't want you to do anything that you're not comfortable with." Blaine whispered. "I am quite okay with just doing this…"

And with that he brought his mouth to Kurt's again, but this time it was a much softer kiss, filled with tenderness.

Blaine leant his forehead against Kurt's and looked up at him, trying not to lose his concentration now that those starlight eyes were only centimetres away from him.

"Thank you," Kurt breathed, his hands against Blaine's chest. Then he pulled his head away; "I do have something else to speak with you about."

"Fire away," Blaine said, showing that he would give him his absolute attention as Kurt dropped his hands back by his sides.

"Well, I have been thinking, and you know you really did upset me when you assumed all of those awful things about me last week?"

Blaine's face suddenly dropped from his blissful state to a sallow complexion as his eyes filled with dread. He pressed his lips together, ashamed of himself.

"So, I have been thinking about how you would make it up to me…" Kurt said in a stern voice.

Blaine looked at him, a little frightened, but ready to accept any punishment he thought fit for his actions after all the suffering he had caused.

"Yes?" Blaine asked, preparing himself.

But then Kurt broke into a beaming smile and ducked his head so that it was an inch apart from Blaine's again:

"Would you do me the honour of spending Christmas with me?"

Kurt winked as Blaine's mouth dropped open in slight outrage, but the corners of his gape turned up in a smile.

"You…that was just cruel!" He exclaimed, giving his boyfriend a slight reprimanding shove as Kurt continued to laugh.

"Should have seen you face!"

"You know what, I have decided that you should stop hanging around with Wes, Trent and David – they are a terrible influence on you!" Blaine said incredulously as he shook his head.

Kurt merely grinned as he took both of Blaine's hands in his again.

"So, do you accept? I heard what you said earlier about your family, and I want you to have a joyful Christmas, not one where you feel you can't even start a conversation."

"Do you mean go to your house? Meet your Dad?"

Kurt nodded excitedly, but Blaine bit his lip.

"What if he hates me?" He murmured.

Kurt was secretly quite amused by Blaine's paranoid worries, but he just squeezed his hands. "Impossible. I want you to meet him, and vice-versa. Please?"

Blaine looked up at those optimistic eyes and the enthusiastic smile playing across his lips. He returned one of his own; as he knew he could never refuse those elfin features or that angelic voice any more than he could cease to breathe.

"Of course I will." He answered, and Kurt flung his arms around his neck to hug him.

* * *

><p>Mwahahaha!<p>

Sorry, that has nothing to do with this chapter, just what I'm starting on at the moment. Oh readers, my plans for this story. Well, I'm super excited, even if you all hate it, which you won't - no dramatic break-ups I promise! Jeez, who am I? Ryan Murphy? No, no, no. It's going to be... interesting though. And guess what? You have no idea?

Sorry, am I teasing? Yup. Deal with it.

Aren't they sweet though? You all getting in the Christmas spirit? I know it's November, but come on! Time to be festive :D

Thank for all the lovely reviews guys! Keep 'em coming! Looooove to you!


	32. Chapter 31: Why?

Chapter Thirty-One: Why?

(Songs: Norah Jones – Don't Know Why)

* * *

><p>Quinn looked up as her mother walked into her room. She was sat, reading her Defence Against The Dark Arts book, which she had already bought in Diagon Alley, in preparation for her return to Hogwarts after Christmas. It was still a little while before school broke up, yet she was still at home, having decided to leave going back until the New Year. She and her mom stayed at the house alone now, her father having moved out before Quinn returned from the hospital, since he was still unable to confront her.<p>

"Hey, Quinny, you have a visitor," Her mum said, looking quite overjoyed by the prospect and Quinn raised her eyebrows. Who could possibly have come to see her now?

Her mother stepped to one side and Quinn's heart almost stopped at the sight of her caller.

Jesse walked in timidly, hands clasped behind his back and lips pressed tightly together as he refused to look the Ravenclaw girl in the eyes.

"Thank you, Mrs Fabray," He said, nodding towards Quinn's mother as she beamed at him and closed the door.

Quinn suddenly felt very faint as she slowly closed her book and smoothed down her dress, averting her eyes as words refused to form on her lips.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to burst in on you like this… I know you must be shocked." He said in a gentle whisper.

She gazed up at him then with conflicted eyes; "Why…How are you here?"

"My dad pulled a few strings and managed to get them to allow an extra Hogwarts Express journey before term ended. I had to go on my own of course, and I have to return tomorrow, but I'm here now."

Quinn nodded, at a loss of what else to do. Jesse came from a very highly esteemed Pure Blood family and his father was one of the top officials at the Ministry of Magic, so naturally he would have managed to secure such an exclusive outing. But there were other more perplexing issues with his presence in her bedroom.

And so she asked the question she had began before switching to the more practical alternative earlier.

"Why are you here?"

Jesse bit his lip and glanced to one side where he spied a small brown arm chair covered by a light blue throw in the corner of Quinn's immaculate and well-designed room. "May I?"

She hesitated, and then nodded, so that he drew up the chair to sit alongside her bed, putting his hands between his knees now as he leant forward. His eyes were trained on the floor for a moment before he lifted them to fix her with an intensity that only he could ever muster.

"I know about the baby, Quinn. I know that it's mine."

She stared at him for a long moment, this statement only adding to her confusion. "This is new information to you?"

She coughed a little as she turned her head away, mouth open and her hands balling into fists as the gripped her skirt, then she whipped her head back around, new anger surging through her.

"What? You thought I just slept around with everyone? You're such a…an asshole!"

"I know, I know, I'm not going to defend myself, Quinn, feel free to yell at me all that you want, I won't pretend to not be the bad guy in this scenario. You have no idea how much I have been furious with myself-" Jesse dramatically clutched the space over his heart "- how terrible I feel for having wronged you and for having hurt you… I had no idea that this was the truth - of my part in it all. I know that trying to parade Rachel around in front of you seems like a twisted act now. She broke up with me, by the way – she was the one who told me the truth in the end. She said I wasn't who she thought and that I had my own stuff to deal with now." He laughed without humour now, a resentful edge to his voice; "You know, I think I sort of loved her, but I have ruined it between me and her as well as me and you now. "

"Fantastic, Jesse, it's always about you isn't it? You can save your little epiphany and amateur dramatics for another girl who will fall for it." Quinn got up and strode across the room, arms tightly folded across her chest.

"Amateur?" He looked bewildered by the remark but quickly shook his head, trying not to dwell on the ridiculous notion.

He stood and came up behind her, placing a tentative hand on her shoulder.

"I'm not asking for your forgiveness, Quinn, I just wanted to apologise so that you know where I stand. Of course, I can in no way compare my side of this whole situation to what you have been going through. I can't even imagine how much you must have suffered, how you must have felt so deserted and betrayed… I wish that things had gone differently."

"Yeah, well, so do I. Never meeting you, for a start." Quinn said, shrugging him off and turning to face him with fierce tears brimming her eyes.

He bowed his head. "I deserve that."

"Yes, you do," She snapped.

"Can I… where is she?" Jesse suddenly asked, looking about the room as if he expected her to spring from the wallpaper.

"She's gone." Quinn said, a sharp edge to her voice now. "I put her up for adoption."

"Oh… I guess that was your call."

"Since you weren't around to make it? Yes, it damn well was." Quinn said bitterly, tears falling freely down her cheeks now.

He opened his mouth to say something, and then closed it again, unsure of himself. His eyes flickered around her face, not sure on what to settle on. Then he took a deep breath; "Do you want me to leave?"

"Yes." She said coldly.

He took a step back and nodded, unable to argue with the bluntness of her words and the hostility emanating from her.

He paused when he got to the door.

"I know that you're angry with me now, Quinn. I understand that you are, and I would never try to force you to change your mind on the matter, even if it kills me to see you so opposed to my presence here. I have done wrong, and I know that now; I also know that it is too late for me to say or to do anything that could possibly make amends. I will have to live with that on my conscience, and you will have to live with what you have endured over the last year. We both lose here, Quinn, and I'm sorry for that. I truly am. I hope that one day you will no longer look upon me with disgust and outrage, all though I know that I have no right to ask that of you."

Jesse put one hand on the door handle, ready to leave, but then-

"…Thank you."

He looked up, a picture of surprise painted on his well-aligned features.

Quinn looked as though she were wrestling with herself, as if the rest of her mind was outraged at her having said those words. "For saying that…for coming to see me. We're not okay, Jesse, not by a long shot. But I appreciate the effort."

He looked as if he had something else to say, but he merely nodded.

She stared at him for a moment.

"You don't love me anymore, though, do you?"

The question threw the Slytherin Seeker off guard for a moment and he opened his mouth, as though he were ready to contradict the statement, but the shut it again.

Quinn knew why; "You love her instead, don't you?"

"Yes." Jesse said turning his head sharply with his intense eyes fixed on the ground.

"Yeah, figures." Quinn said, an even greater resentment biting on her tongue and Jesse looked a little perplexed but did not say another word.

"You know your way out." She said quietly and looked away to the wall to her left as he bowed his head and swept from the room.

Quinn crossed over to her bed and curled up on it, tucking her head beneath her arm. When her mother knocked to ask her for dinner later that evening, she did not come to the door.

Rachel and Finn were paired together in Transfigurations the next day and the sight of their awkward exchanges would have been comical if it weren't excruciatingly painful to behold.

"Have they even spoken a word to one another?" Blaine asked Kurt, leaning his head towards him so that McGonagall could not overhear the whispered question.

"No… and I don't even see how that's possible…" They were transfiguring centipedes into flutes and it was very tricky to handle the scuttling creatures as a couple as it was, let alone with minimal – or in their case, zero – communication.

Just as he said it, Blaine slammed his arm down on the left side of their table to prevent their own bug from racing off the furniture.

Kurt looked at it in disgust and used _impedimenta_ so that he would not have to watch its writhing legs any longer.

"So… let me get this straight," Blaine said, ignoring the task in hand, seeing as he had already transfigured one creepy crawly earlier that lesson - he had done it last year and McGonagall had tried to test him to see if he remembered at the beginning of the lesson, and as a demonstration for the class. It had taken a couple of attempts, but he had managed it amicably. He promised to teach Kurt later, seeing as their present conversation was too great a distraction. "Finn likes Rachel, Rachel likes Finn-"

"As Mercedes established for me earlier, yes." Kurt interjected but signalled for the continuation of the Chaser's sum-up.

"Rachel chose Jesse over Finn when she thought he was the incarnation of all things wonderful, but then everyone found out he's the father of Quinn's baby – including Rachel – so they broke up."

The gossip had flooded the school within a matter of hours, with no one knowing quite how news got out – very few secrets were kept long within Hogwarts.

"And Finn has confessed that he still really likes Rachel in a very blatant form, so that she must know for sure?"

"I would assume so, yes." Kurt said simply.

"…And they're not together now because…?" Blaine asked slowly, eyes looking out their corners and brow furrowed in a confused, pondering expression.

"… Because they're totally hopeless human beings." Kurt finished, conjuring a pair rubber gloves so that he could pinch the end of the centipede and drag it back to the centre of the table with a look of revulsion as he attempted the spell again. It transfigured into a recorder and he sighed.

Blaine kissed his cheek, "Don't worry, my first try it turned into a conductor's stick, so don't be disheartened – yours is much closer."

Kurt smiled warmly but then looked back at the vertically mismatched pair before them and rolled his eyes.

"We have to do something."

"What?" Blaine asked as he picked up the recorder, flicking one tiny leg that stuck out below the third hole, slightly amused.

Kurt shrugged. "Talk to them? Slap them? Stick their heads down the toilet until they see sense? Or just put Rachel in front of a mirror so she realises that she dresses like a four year old who broke into her grandmother's wardrobe…"

"How will that help with Finn?" Blaine asked.

"It won't – just my piece of mind," Kurt said with a sigh. "Talking is probably the best bet – even if it is the least fun of all of the options. We can band together and make them realise that their prolonged distance is just nonsensical. You talk to Finn, I'll take Rachel."

Blaine raised an eyebrow; "You want to take Rachel?"

"'Want' is too strong a term," Kurt corrected in a business-like tone, clasping his hands before him on the desk as he looked directly at his boyfriend; "You have no previous experience of handling the manically dysfunctional phenomenon that is Rachel Berry, I – however unfortunately – have dealt with it before, therefore it is only logical. Besides, whereas Finn and I get along, you have the whole masculine sports team bravado thing in common. You can talk to him in a locker room where he'll feel most at home and more likely to spill his heart out. You'll have a man-to-man talk about the girl he's desperately pursuing and then they'll run off into the sunset together." He shrugged. "I don't know; I see it in movies."

Blaine tilted his head to one side, "You watch too many Romantic Comedies."

"There's such a thing as too many?" Kurt replied quickly, face a picture of astonishment.

Blaine chuckled and elbowed him playfully. "So, we're doing this?"

One corner of Kurt's mouth pulled up in a wicked smile and he held up one hand for Blaine to high five – which he did.

"Mr Hummel, I would ask that you desist in your own private conversations until I hear you play a perfect harmony on a_ flute_ that you should have created by now," Professor McGonagall said, folding her arms as she looked sternly across at their table.

Kurt and Blaine turned forwards again, paying attention to the lesson plan instead, but faint smiles remained painted across each one's lips as they nudged their toes against the other's under the table.

Quidditch practice had just ended; the team were in good spirits after their victory the week before against Hufflepuff, which put them ahead on the House Cup competition as well. Gryffindors were generally abuzz with enthusiasm, which greatly added to the Christmas cheer, as the first snow had conveniently fallen the day after the match. It was only a thin layer at that moment, but as Blaine walked back towards the locker rooms, he couldn't help but smile as he reminisced about its first sighting.

They had been in the Astronomy tower when it had fallen in the evening, so that the sky was darkening, but then the pair of them had seen the white flecks from their position by the window and as soon as the professor had turned her head away.  
>Kurt had reached his fingertips into the cold night air to catch the snowflakes. His hands had been like ice afterwards, so that Blaine had had to warm them up between the two of his own.<p>

Blaine shook his head. He had business to attend to, one that the boy in question had asked of him, and he was not about to let him down. In all honesty, he was feeling a little urgent to prove himself, still experiencing the prolonged guilt derived from his previous actions and now feeling even more wary and frightened of his upcoming visit to the Hummel residence.  
>Kurt's father had sent him a letter that morning to say that Blaine would be welcome to come and stay for the holiday. Blaine wondered what exactly Kurt had filled his father in on concerning the couple; he hadn't dared ask because he was trying to put it out of his mind. He'd never had a boyfriend before, and therefore never had to face the problematic – and usually traumatic – event of meeting the parents. He had only ever seen the scenario on films and TV, where it was rarely portrayed in a positive light. He was terrified that he would say something stupid, or offend them somehow, or accidentally killed their pet dog. If they even had a dog – maybe he should ask… then he could prevent any canine-related accidents. He didn't reckon they had a dog, since Kurt had never mentioned one. Great, now he was fretting over imaginary animals. What had become of him?<p>

Moving on…

He spotted Finn over by the corner of the lockers, pulling off his Keeper's gloves and looking up to smile at Blaine as he walked in.

Blaine sat down on the end of the bench and watched the taller boy carefully, the one in question noticing the eyes set upon him.

Finn turned his head, narrowing his eyes suspiciously:

"What?"

Blaine just raised his eyebrows in a you-know-what kind of way.

Finn sighed and closed his locker door, putting a hand to his forehead.

"Yeah, I know." He said miserably.

"Have you talked to her at all?" The Chaser asked diligently.

Finn shook his head; "Not since I told her all of the things that I had been promising to keep secret all year, no."

"Well, at least you made it a year." Blaine said, trying to joke and make the Keeper feel better. He failed in this attempt. "Look man, it was one of those things that was always going to come out eventually. And don't you think it's better that it has? At least everyone sort of knows where they stand now – there were way too many misunderstandings in that situation that if it had gone further, things were probably going to get nasty."

"But I gave Quinn my word…she's probably furious with me." Finn said guiltily.

"Well, you won't know until next year, but I think she'll understand. There's not a hell of a lot you can do about that until you see her… but there's another more immediate problem that you could deal with…" Blaine said, trying not to sound unsympathetic and adding a tone to his voice so that what he was hinting at was made clear.

Finn rested his head against the locker door and let out a deep groan.

"I don't think I have the energy left to deal with Rachel anymore." He said bitterly.

"But you love her," Blaine said in a quiet voice, barely a whisper, but he knew the tall boy heard him.

Finn turned around to face him, looking utterly defeated. "But what am I supposed to do? I've tried; I've followed both yours and Kurt's advice and look where it has led me… They're finally broken up, sure, but she still refuses to acknowledge me as an option. So I give up."

"Never red you as a quitter…" Blaine eyed him.

"I'm not man, but she's not giving me any help here."

Blaine leant forward, folding his arms and resting them on his knees so that he looked directly at the tall boy huddled on the floor.

"Did you consider that maybe Rachel wants some time on her own right now and that it may have nothing to do with her relationship with you?" Finn looked up then and met his eyes as Blaine continued. "Think about it, walk in her shoes for a moment; she has just found out that the person she has devoted herself to for many months - who she rejected you over because she thought he was the more reasonable and safer option - was actually the father of the baby of a girl who she used as her forefront reason not to be with you. By any stretch of the imagination, that's a lot to deal with. Don't you think that she may be a bit muddled up in the head right now?"

"I guess…" Finn grunted. Then he exhaled slowly. "Yeah, yeah I guess that maybe you're right…like she's confused…and stuff, yeah?"

"Precisely," Blaine said, smiling warmly at him. "She has to figure that out in her head, figure out how she feels about him, you, the situation, plus the fact you knew about Quinn and Jesse and kept that secret."

"But how long will that take? If I wait around for much longer I'll go crazy… I feel nuts already… besides, who is to say that after all that she won't still reject me?"

Blaine sighed; "I can't promise you anything, of course, but once she's mulled it over I don't see how you could be painted badly in her eyes. You were being a loyal friend to them both and she has to see that. Just… don't lose hope now. Please."

Finn shook his head. "There's not a lot else that I can do that's going to change anything. I'm tired of all this scheming."

Blaine leant forward to pat him on the shoulder.

"I'm just saying that if you see a window, don't neglect jumping through it. You never know, man. Better to go for it and pray for the best, right?"

The Keeper fixed him with a curious stare, wondering why Blaine was so eager to push this. Finn wasn't always the sharpest of guys, but he could see a particular craftsmanship when it was staring him in the face.

His expression fell flat. "Kurt put you up to this, didn't he?"

Blaine drew back, trying to keep the suspiciously guilty look off of his features.

Finn grimaced and stood up, tucking his robes under his arm with the intention to change elsewhere.

"Okay… I kind of, you know, appreciate the fact that you guys are trying to help and all dude, but I don't need all this right now. Maybe you're right – or Kurt's right – or whoever came up with all that stuff about her figuring it out. I don't know. But right now, the balls in her court. I get what you're trying to do, but she made her choice with Jesse on her own… I know stuff has changed since then… but I'm not forcing her into anything. If she decides that she wants me, well, I doubt I'm going anywhere for the time being. If she feels the way you all seem to think she does, then maybe I won't have to wait long… but I won't hold my breath."

Blaine watched as the tall boy exited the locker room with his head hung low and the older Gryffindor brushed his hair back, a little agitated and annoyed with himself. That probably could have gone better.

David sat on the entrance steps for a long while as he watched the sun descend below the horizon that evening. He turned over a small box in his hands, wrapped in light blue paper and tied with a tiny silver ribbon. He twirled it in between his fingers and sighed.

He looked up at the clock which showed him that it was an hour and a half since the time he had asked Mercedes to meet him here, so that he could only presume that she was not about to arrive.

Just then he looked up to see two shadows that touched the tips of his toes.

Wes and Trent stood with their arms folded, smiles on their faces - Trent's considerably more sympathetic.

"Women," Wes scoffed. "Come on, man, we have a riot to plan."

"Since when were songs riots?" Trent asked him from his side.

Wes shrugged. "When we're involved in them?"

David clambered to his feet and walked up the steps towards them. "When we don't give Blaine a solo lead in our performance?"

The two of them nodded and grinned like Cheshire cats.

David smirked a little, trying to forget his most recent disappointment. "Well, it'll be a fun surprise for him, so he can't complain too much."

"Hey, it's our turn in the spotlight now," Trent said happily, flicking his hair in a diva-pose.

Wes rolled his eyes and clamped his arms around his two friend's shoulders. "Like we're ever out of it – let's face it; we rule this place and everybody knows it."

Mercedes hid behind one of the stone statues as she watched the three boys pass. She would like to have told herself that if David had stayed a minute longer she would have gone to meet him, but she knew that this was probably not the case deep down.

She had wanted to go, in a way, but she felt so torn about the whole situation and something within her made her feel far too nervous and even a little nauseous about it. She just couldn't face him. Not on her own. Not now. It was almost too over whelming and all though she knew there was nothing to be legitimately afraid of, she couldn't help being so, yet she didn't even understand herself why this was.

_I waited 'til I saw the sun_

_I don't know why I didn't come_

_I left you by the house of fun_

_I don't know why I didn't come_

_I don't know why I didn't come_

Mercedes walked out into the hall now, once the coast was clear and she looked down at the floor, judging herself a little and her ridiculous attitude towards the entire affair. It wasn't exactly dangerous; he was just a guy, right? He shouldn't be causing all the commotion in her mind…

_When I saw the break of day_

_I wished that I could fly away_

_Instead of kneeling in the sand_

_Catching teardrops in my hand_

_My heart is drenched in wine_

_But you'll be on my mind_

_Forever_

She licked her lips as she sighed inwardly. Why was he so persistently locked in her thoughts? And if he insisted on being so then why could she not outwardly commit herself to being with him? She knew the reasons somewhat, but she wished that she did not expand such issues in a way that they overcame her chances of happiness or coming to terms with all of this.

_Out across the endless sea_

_I would die in ecstasy_

_But I'll be a bag of bones_

_Driving down the road along_

_My heart is drenched in wine_

_But you'll be on my mind_

_Forever_

_Something has to make you run_

_I don't know why I didn't come_

_I feel as empty as a drum_

_I don't know why I didn't come_

_I don't know why I didn't come_

_I don't know why I didn't come_

Mercedes sat at the top of the steps now, face in her hands as she looked out at the sunset and knew that she had been unreasonably unfair that evening, that David would most likely be upset with her and have every right to be, and that she would probably regret her actions. She kind of already did…

"What, what, what are you doing?" Kurt held onto one of the poles that cornered the library shelves and swung around it so that he made Rachel jump from his sudden appearance.

Her hand flew to her heart, causing her quill to jump out of it and ink to spray across the table, Kurt swinging back just in time to avoid damaging his clothes.

"Jesus, Kurt, are you trying to kill me?" She said in a low hiss, glancing around the quiet surroundings.

He shrugged and swished his wand so that the ink disappeared before swinging back around, now jumping off to perch upon the end of the desk Rachel was working at instead.

"I won't lie and say I haven't contemplated it in the past, out of my duty to society and fashion, but I let you off the hook for that, so I suppose I will continue to do so."

She scowled at him and returned to her Divinations essay.

"Oh don't sulk – you know I don't mean it. Now, are you going to answer my question?" Kurt asked, refusing to allow her to return to her studies.

"What question?" She muttered darkly and so Kurt sighed and yanked the papers from under her quill and threw them to one side.

"Kurt! I was working on that!" Rachel thundered.

The boy she had directed her hostility towards rolled his eyes and twirled his wand in his hand, staring at the ceiling. "First of all, there is absolutely no way that you will be getting any work done while I am here, secondly that was one of your old essays from the syllabus we were set six weeks ago, because you forget that I am in your class and that I know we have no essay set over the holidays. Seriously, Rachel, you may be a good actress, but I am not an idiot."

The tiny brunette slumped back in her chair, folding her arms defiantly and glaring up at Kurt from beneath her eyelashes. "You know it may interest you to know that you do not reign supreme over everything, especially not me!"

"Don't be ridiculous, Rachel, we both know that isn't true." He said, hopping off of the desk and going round to the back of her chair and spinning it so that she was forced to face him directly as he leant down to her.

"I'm going to cut right to the chase, because we both know what is going on here, and all though I realise that your lack of common sense is blatant in most areas of your life – namely your dress sense – I also know that you are not a fool, Rachel, and yes, the two of us share similarities and I am not going to insult both of our intelligence by beating around the bush."

Rachel sighed and her expression remained grim and stubborn.

"I hope you realise that you have no power to force me to do anything, I appreciate the fact that you may or may not be trying to help me here – since I am sure you see something in this for you on some level – but that doesn't mean that I am going to be willing to tell you anything."

"Yes you will," Kurt said cheerfully.

"You don't know that!" She exclaimed, extremely irritated.

"I do because one-" he brandished one finger in the air before her nose, "- you are terrible at keeping secrets, especially those revolving around my brother, and two: I know that you are so terrible at them, because I know everything anyway, through things you have said already and by things that are positively dripping from your general being whenever you take a step. You're like an open book, Rachel."

She looked at him dumbfounded. "You don't know everything Kurt Hummel, you may know that I like Finn and that I am upset about Jesse – those such facts are obvious, but you can't possibly have any idea about anything else!"

"Ah, Rachel, Rachel, Rachel." Kurt said, pushing away from her chair now so that he paced the length of the library aisle.

"Yes, you like Finn, yes, I could probably have told you and anyone else that in perfect certainty for about three years now. You neglect to say that you in fact love Finn, why you find such an unquestionable fact difficult to admit, I have no idea, we've all known for ages, so if you haven't come to terms with that then you're way behind the pack. Except I'm sure that you haven't been oblivious seeing as I doubt it would be past your own love of ballads and musicals to ignore such extravagant feelings – believe me, I've been there. Also, the fact that you're going bright red now backs up this theory."

Rachel ducked her head to one side in an attempt to hide but Kurt continued;  
>"Yes, I know that you're upset about Jesse. You're bound to be. You were together for ages, he isn't who you thought he was, and your entire perceptions have changed. Yada, yada, yada. You've probably passed an all-men-are-scum phase by now, declaring that you can live without them and that it is better for you to try and make it on your own and leave all thoughts of them behind, while secretly knowing that you'll never manage to do that. You're scared that Finn may hurt you and not be who you thought - just as Jesse let you down that way - you have also deemed him an unworthy target for your affections for many months now, because you presumed that he had gone off with Quinn and that he had reversed all of your expectations of him during your friendship. You think you're totally misunderstood in this situation, that we all hate you for going off with a Slytherin who turned out to be the trouble Finn had labelled him as all along and you don't wish us to influence your decision. You want it to be your own; you want some big revelation like in Broadway shows. You also have far too much pride to want to confess directly to Finn that you were wrong, that you made a rash judgement and you are embarrassed by your actions. You're also fretting over how he may react to you now. What his opinions on the two of you are. You're also probably expanding the entire circumstance in your head, because you're used to making every aspect of your life magnetised by a greater intensity and centralisation to yourself."<p>

Rachel gawped at him, utterly stunned.

"This isn't about the ins and outs of your inner conflictions Rachel, we can sit here all day and go on and on and on about every specific concern and confusion rattling around that brain of yours and where will it get us? What are we going to achieve? Honestly?"

Rachel shuffled uncomfortably in her seat. "But Kurt… I don't know what to do, or where I stand, or what he's thinking… what if he hates me?"

Kurt sighed. "Getting you to quit this over-thinking lark is going to be nearby impossible, isn't it?"

"I'm not over-thinking! I am being logical; this is a big deal, Kurt, in case you hadn't noticed. I can't just fling myself into all of it blindly. Too much has happened, too much has to be sorted out." Rachel insisted, exasperated as she looked up at him, screwing up her face into wild expressions of incredulity.

"Noooo…" Kurt corrected. "You're making things difficult for yourself - Shut your eyes."

"What?"

"Just do it." He ordered.

"I don't see why-"

"For the love of God, Rachel, do you want my help or not?" Kurt snapped.

"I never asked for it," She retorted.

He put his hands on his hips. "Fine, I'll leave."

He made to turn away from her and back up the aisle but then…

"No, okay, okay. I'm closing my eyes."

She did as she was told and Kurt smirked as he turned back around to face her.

"I still think you're talking nonsense, however." She added.

Kurt ignored the last comment, sneaking a look at her to check that her eyes were shut tight.

"What do you want to do?" He asked slowly.

"What? What do you mean? About what?" Rachel asked in a sudden torrent.

"No, focus. Don't think too much about it. Clear your mind and don't answer right away - you don't even have to answer out loud. But what do you _want _to do? Forget everyone else; forget the complications and different factors of everything and anything other than what _you _want. This doesn't even involve me. I can't influence your decision any more than anyone else. It is all down to you, Rachel, just as you always wanted. Pure and simple. Take your time."

"Kurt, I don't-"

"Nope. Not listening. You be quiet and you think about it."

Rachel sat and frowned. Why was he making her do this? What was the point? It wouldn't help. He was being impossible and infuriating. Damn it, why did he have to do this? She felt like an idiot sitting here with her eyes closed while he was just looming over her, probably laughing at her. Typical. She opened her eyes.

"Kurt this isn't…" She realised that he was no longer before her. She twisted her head around and saw that he was nowhere around. Kurt had just abandoned her here. "Oh, just charming." She scathed.

She sat fuming for a good few minutes before her heart rate eventually slowed after her anger.

She sighed for a moment. Glancing around to make sure that he was definitely gone. Before she closed her eyes again. Thinking.

* * *

><p>Hello Readers!<br>So, I know that there wasn't a hell of a lot of action here, and that it was mostly just tying up a few storylines, but trust me, Christmas will be precious, and after Christmas... All hell breaks loose.

Well, not literal hell, this isn't a Buffy fanfiction. Ah crap, now I want to do a Buffy Fic. But i won't, because I'm far too busy re-watcing it (have it loaded as I write) also I need to finish this aaaaand keep working on my novel which keeps twisting in odd directions so that I hardly know how to keep up with tis.  
>Oh, and also, I am taking time out from my essay that's due in tomorrow to post this, so be grateful! I also just cut my hair in cause of procrastination, and I think it looks okay, though it probably looks awful - yaaaay!<br>Oh, and Wes, David and Trent's plan for the next chapter involves my all time favourite Christmas song, so you best love it or I'll, I dunno, cry or something. Perhaps so much that I will never write again!  
>Naaahhh, that'll never happen, it's a disease I tell ya, I can't quit.<br>Who's excited about Christmas? Hey, I know it isn't December yet, but we've reached the one month mark and the town centre is all lit up and has big Christmas trees and I feel oh so festive writing all of this stuff!  
>Get in the holiday spirit people. If all else fails, listen to the Glee Christmas album, which I refuse to listen to until I see the episode. I know, my will power astounds myself at times, but I just don't like knowing the songs before I see the show because I like the surprise and they're always way better to listen to in context with the story line. Well, in my opinion anyway, but if you can't be as patient as me then I hope that you're enjoying them!<br>Anyway, shall shut up now, hope you liked the chapter guys, will update as soon as I can :D


	33. Chapter 32: Muggle

Chapter Thirty-Two: Muggle

(Songs: Anberlin – Baby Please Come Home – Yes it's a cover, I know, but it is better!)

* * *

><p>Kurt settled onto the bench at the Gryffindor table. It was the last day of term and so this was the final assembly. He had arrived late having been unable to decide on which festive-coloured undershirt to wear and was curious as to why everyone was so silent. He glanced at Finn who shrugged once, before stealing one glance at the strangely quiet brunette girl across from him, who was looking determinedly away in thought.<p>

Kurt sighed, and Mercedes rolled her eyes in his direction before also looking around, most likely trying to spy their friends from fellow houses to see if they knew any more about the weird silence.

The countertenor did not know whether she achieved her mini-mission however, as he nudged Blaine gently, the boy beside him turning his head, a small smile on his lips after having scrutinised the High Table.

"What's going on?" Kurt whispered, leaning his head close to the Gryffindor whom he could instantly tell from his reaction was equally clueless.

"No idea. Dumbledore hasn't even spoken yet, he looks kind of… expectant though." Blaine mused, and Kurt followed the gaze and saw the majestic wizard at the centre of all their professors, leaning forward on dented fingertips, and looking down the table aisles at nothing in particular.

"What's he waiting for?" Kurt asked.

"Beats me," Blaine replied as he covered the hand that Kurt had lain on the table with his own.

Just then a faint melody began to rise from the back of the room. It was not actual instruments playing; more a chorus of voices, each making a small sound that wove together in harmony to create the illusion of backing accompaniments. An acapella squad of boys in various uniform began to file in and collect by the rear walls as the rest of the student body whipped their heads round simultaneously to view the spectacle.

_(Christmas)_

They chorused.

Then a loud sound could be heard to their right where the Hufflepuff table stood.

_The snow's coming down_

Trent had leapt down from the window tapestry he had been sealed behind as he sang the line and landed on the wooden platform beneath, a grin on his face.

_(Christmas)_

The group continued

_I'm watching it fall_

David jumped up onto the corner of the Ravenclaw table to their left and danced forward a few steps as he sang the next lyric.

_(Christmas)_

Kurt's hand flew to his heart suddenly as Wes' ecstatic face suddenly burst from underneath their table, directly beneath the table ornament that sat before them where a hole had been secretly carved in the wood in order for him to jump up through.

_Lots of people around_

He reached his hands through this trap hole in the Gryffindor table and took off the bowl that had been previously situated atop of it, clambering onto it like his friends. He winked at the two boys who gawped at his random appearance.

_(Christmas)_

The troublesome trio all sang together now, spreading their arms out wide in triumph at their surprise entrance.

_Baby please come home_

_(Christmas)_

_The church bells in town_

The three boys flicked their wands so that a tinkle of bells sounded.

_(Christmas)_

_All ringing in song_

_(Christmas)_

Wes leant down and took Rachel's hand as he skipped down to where she sat, kissed it, and then carried merrily on his way, ignoring the annoying glares coming from the Gryffindor Keeper.

_Full of happy sounds_

_(Christmas)_

Their recruited boys began to file down the aisles as the two Ravenclaws and the Hufflepuff danced down the three house tables. The Slytherins sat back, scowling at the show.

_Baby, please come home_

Then Trent leapt over to join Wes on the Gryffindor table, they grinned at one another and then leapt over to join David at the Ravenclaw station before all three joined hands and jumped onto the miserable Slytherin's table.

_They're singing "Deck The Halls"_

_But it's not like Christmas at all_

They gave disgusted looks to the un-festive Slytherin's, who sat fuming as the boys pranced down the furniture, completely uninhibited, and the green-clad students could do nothing to prevent those they loathed doing so.

_Cuz I remember when you were here_

_And all the fun we had last year_

Trent leant forward and patted one particularly brooding 4th Year on the head and he looked like he deeply wished to throttle the Hufflepuff for his nerve. Then they turned as their acapella choir had reached the stage and both David and Trent, who had now neared the end of the Slytherin table, hopped off of it to join them.

_(Christmas)_

_Pretty lights on the tree_

_(Christmas)_

Wes remained on the table as he reached the end where a particular black-haired Slytherin girl sat, her arms folded, but an unwilling smile on her lips as she gazed up at him.

_I'm watching them shine_

He put a hand out and Santana high fived him, much to the disgust of those around her, before he laughed and ran down to the end of the table to join the rest.

_(Christmas)_

_You should be here with me_

_(Christmas)_

_Baby, please come home_

The three mischief-makers made eye contact with their friends around the room and held out their hands in a beckoning motion. The Gryffindors all glanced at each other, slightly wary but mostly excitedly as they saw Brittany dart forward and join in dancing with the sea of boys now brimming the platform in front of the High Table.

They all beamed and got up to follow suit.

_There singing deck the halls_

_But it's not like Christmas at all_

Mercedes went over to the Slytherin table herself, and gestured to Santana to come with her. Santana looked reluctant, stealing a glance at the dancing blonde who was now amidst the crowd, then she looked to the other members of her house, who fixed her with reproach. The hostility, however, seemed to spur her on as she gave them a steely glare, got up and took Mercedes' hand, who led her to the front of the pack.

_Cuz I remember when you were here_

_And all the fun we had last year!_

Kurt and Blaine joined hands as they danced with the others, Kurt looping through Blaine's arms until his arms crossed over his chest in an embrace in front of one another and then swayed with the rest of them, smiles wide on all of their faces.

_(Christmas)_

_If there was a way_

More and more students began to flood the floor now, some dancing in between the aisles, some coming up to the front, some following the trend of getting up on table tops.

_(Christmas)_

_I'd hold back this tear_

Rachel laughed but stopped short as she caught Finn's eye, quickly looking away, and having no time to dwell on such thoughts as Trent took her hand and twirled her across the floor.

_(Christmas)_

_But it's Christmas day_

_(Please)_

_Please_

_(Please)_

_Please_

Then the Great Hall burst out into laughter as Wes, Trent and David went over to the High Table and took the hands of Sprout, McGonagall and Hooch and pulled them onto what was now supposedly a dance floor as well. The teachers seemed a little alarmed, but eventually conceded.

_(Please)_

_Please_

_(Please)_

_Please_

Soon half of the teachers had joined them and nearly all of the Hogwarts students, bar the Slytherin's and their Potion's Master, who all sat resolutely in their chairs.

For everyone else, however, the event was filled with laughter at the sheer ludicrously of what was happening and, needless to say, the three boys would most definitely claim this as a mighty personal victory, deriving from their own pure genius.

_Baby, please come home_

_(Christmas)_

_Baby, please come home_

_(Christmas)_

_Baby, please come home_

_(Christmas)_

_Baby, please come home_

* * *

><p>Everyone walked towards the Hogwarts Express, the three boys who had caused the commotion in assembly skipped along seeming very pleased with themselves and Kurt rolled his eyes before squeezing Blaine's hand, which was tightly held in his own.<p>

He looked over at him and grinned; "I can't wait for you to see my home, I designed a lot of the décor, of course, and I think that you'll be impressed, but not at all surprised, as everyone knows that I have impeccable taste."

"Undoubtedly," Blaine said, reaching his free hand across to fiddle with his cravat, which he had underneath his shirt. Kurt swatted his hand away playfully.

"And my Dad! I'm so excited for you to meet him."  
>"Isn't it something you should be nervous about, me meeting your family?" Blaine asked, looking a little abashed as he stared at his shoes.<p>

"No, why? Are you?" Kurt asked, trying and failing to hide the small smirk playing around his lips.

"Maybe… I don't know, I guess I just can't imagine having a Dad who would be okay with it all…" Blaine mused.

Kurt rested his head against Blaine's shoulder. "He may be a bit weird about it at first, he's understanding, but I know he's still adjusting to me being who I am. This will be another step for him to take, but honestly, I think you'll get on great, if in doubt just talk about football. Lucky that your Mum's cousin is a muggle and so you know about their sports."

"Yeah… yeah, okay." Blaine said, taking a deep breath.

Kurt cocked his head to one side, smiling.

"You're enjoying this aren't you?" Blaine asked in monotone.

Kurt laughed, "Maybe just a little."

Blaine sighed, but quickly lifted their intertwined hands in the air, pulling them over his head and placing Kurt's arm around his waist before weaving his own around and snuggling close to his boyfriend in the cold weather.

Wes turned around then and made a gesture as though he was going to vomit.

* * *

><p>The train ride was not nearly as bad as the way up at the beginning of term had been, Blaine still felt the need to get a separate compartment, and Kurt had been a little wary at first when he said he would do so, but Blaine just smiled quickly, and took him along with him.<p>

"Are you sure you don't want to stay with your friends? I'll be all right, honestly, I don't want you to miss the last few hours you'll have with them…"

"It's fine, honestly, I spent all of yesterday evening with Mercedes and Rachel, saying proper goodbyes, and we still have the platform to get through on the other end. I'm staying with you," Kurt said firmly, in a tone that indicated there would be no more discussion of the matter.

Blaine laid his head on Kurt's chest in the compartment, closed his eyes and went to sleep, this tactic still seemed to be the only way for him to have a peaceful journey, and Kurt was so glad that he could now wrap his arms around the vocalist as he dreamed.

* * *

><p>The platform was just as chaotic as Kurt remembered from a few months back as the Gryffindors and their 7th Year friends pushed past the crowds of students that swarmed around them, kicking trunks into the backs of each other's heels and First Years darting in between the small gaps, often elbowing those closest.<p>

Wes cast a few _Impedimenta _charms on them and cackled as he watched them struggle to continue. Blaine scowled, and un-enchanted them, allowing the clueless eleven year olds to escape in a confused hurry.

"You ruin all of my fun," Wes complained, folding his arms as Trent stood behind him, trying not to laugh.

"And just because you can use magic out of school, doesn't mean you should harass children."

"You make that sound so perverted," David chimed in.

"Yeah, I'm getting an unpleasant window into your mind here, Anderson," Wes said, furrowing his eyebrows in disgust.

Trent stepped forward and pinched his cheeks; "We sure are going to miss your adorable over-protective stance over these little ones. Awwww."

Blaine swatted his hand away but grinned. "See you guys in January, then?"

"It's gonna be weird not having you around town, man," David said, clapping him on the back, but then looking up to see something a short distance away and giving his friend a fleeting farewell before departing.

"Yes, I'm not sure I will be able to survive it, the heart break shall be unbearable," Wes added, practising his dramatics by putting the back of his hand to his forehead and falling backwards to where Trent now stood, ready to catch him.

Trent laughed, then pulled Wes up, lifting him, and slinging him over his shoulder.

"Don't worry, I'll get him out of here now – we have to go and say goodbye to Brittany - I'm sure you guys won't regret being rid of his ugly mug for a month," He said happily as he turned around, whistling a merry Christmas tune as he disappeared into the crowd, towards the barrier.

"How dare you! Put me down!" Wes called as his face continued to bob above the heads of the other Hogwarts students before it too, dissolved into the blurred background.

Kurt, who had been mostly silent through the older boy's goodbyes, raised an eyebrow, "Always an experience having any sort of conversation with them, isn't it?"

"If you want to call it that, sure," Blaine muttered. His complexion was still fairly pale from the train journey and Kurt brushed a hand over his cheek, holding it there for a moment and frowning.

Blaine looked towards the ground, allowing his head to sit warmly in Kurt's hand, before looking back into his boyfriend's eyes and smiling, "Don't look like that; it's so much better now that I have you, honestly."

Kurt did not look convinced.

Blaine chuckled, "I mean it, I may even join everyone else when we go back after Christmas."

Kurt's face became a depiction of deep surprise as he almost took a physical step back, his hand dropping from Blaine's face.

The boy in question took it, holding it between both of his own and gave him a comforting look.

"Seriously. It's getting better."

* * *

><p>"Mercedes," David whispered as the Gryffindor girl wheeled around, coming face to face with the Ravenclaw who was hiding behind a particularly large stack of trunks.<p>

She had been talking with her parents, who had already found her on the platform and were just about to take her things for a moment so that she could go and find her friends for a last farewell.

However, this particular person was not whom she had desired a private consultation with. Still, she did owe him, and so once she had rearranged her wide-eyed expression into a far more peaceable one, she returned to the man and woman who held a striking resemblance to her and told them that she would be along in just a moment.

They nodded and her mother kissed her cheek before they walked away. It was not until they had gone enough distance to disappear from sight that Mercedes unwillingly turned her attention to the patient boy who remained behind her.

David stepped forward.

"Look, David, I'm really sorry about-"

He swiftly placed a finger to her lips and shook his head.

"It's okay, I don't want to hear it. I understand that something to do with this – us – is making the whole situation difficult for you. But now is not the time, I don't want to have this conversation now, when we will then have to leave each other for so long. I can wait." He said softly and slowly, far calmer than she would have expected as he had lowered his hand by now. "Just know that I am not giving up until I do hear your explanation, and from then on whether I continue or not shall depend on how valid I deem it."

David winked and Mercedes couldn't help but allow herself a small giggle.

He seemed brightened by this and held out his hand where the tiny blue box sat neatly in his palm.

"Merry Christmas, Mercedes," He said, placing it on her own hand before she could protest.

He nodded his head and then turned to walk away, leaving her to flit her eyes between his rescinding silhouette and the curious present that was now in her possession.

* * *

><p>Finn pushed his way through everyone, seeing Kurt and Blaine ahead of him, he reached them after a great deal of effort and tapped Kurt on the shoulder.<p>

"Ready to go?" He asked hurriedly.

Kurt pouted, "We haven't said goodbye to everyone yet, have you seen them?"

"I, err… No, no I haven't seen them since we left the train, they disappeared." Finn said, rubbing the back of his neck and looking as though he'd rather just leave. He seemed a little down, and Kurt could only assume that a certain someone had given him the cold shoulder on the journey.

He sighed, "Let me find them, I'll just be a moment and then we're out of here, okay?"

"There's Rachel, now," Blaine said, nodding his head and raising a hand as the feisty brunette came into view.

Kurt bit his lip and glanced at Blaine, who returned an expression as if to say: "What? Was I meant to just ignore her?" but said nothing.

Rachel did not look as though she had needed the beckoning, however, she strode forward with a confident gait and her eyes were fixed determinedly on Finn.

For a moment, the Gryffindor Keeper could have sworn she was about to hit him or something, with the intensity of her expression at that moment, but then she pulled up short before him, reached up and took his collar, pulling him down to her level and kissed him directly on the lips, in plain view of everyone.

Several onlookers gawped at the sudden public display of affection that had sprung from nowhere, and Finn almost staggered backwards a little, before he collected himself and wrapped his arms around Rachel, lifting her up to his height.

They finally broke apart, and looked away, realising what had happened and glancing towards a rather stunned couple that had just been granted a very close eyewitness account of their romantic outburst. The two boys stood frozen, and Kurt just about broke conscious thought to notice that Mercedes now stood near to him, looking just as dazed.

The two before them laughed nervously and then Rachel tucked her hair behind her ear and smiled up at Finn.

"I will see you next year," She stated casually, as though nothing had just happened. "I have to go and find my Dads, they'll be waiting on the other side of the barrier for me by now, and even though they are accustomed to me being fashionably late, I think that I may be pushing the line a little. Mercedes, Kurt, Blaine, I will see you soon!"

And then she darted past them before a reply could be given by any of her nonplussed classmates.

Finn had gone a deep shade of red and Blaine was the first to find words again as he clapped Finn on the arm and whispered: "Just be glad that Wes, Trent and David have already left."

Finn grimaced, but looked thankful for that fact.

Kurt did not fail to pick up on Mercedes' squirm beside him on the last name that Blaine had uttered.

* * *

><p>Here again.<p>

On the doorstep of his house. Beside Finn again, but to his left stood another new addition and Kurt found himself a lot more on edge than he had been the last time they were in this position. He tried to stop his mind from fretting over the possible conclusions of this visit. He breathed as the sound of the doorbell that Finn had just pressed rung out; he shouldn't be worried, he should be looking after the suddenly very pale boy next to him who was fidgeting and twisting his fingers together.

The door swung open and Carole's bright smile met them once again, just as it had done on the break of the summer months.

* * *

><p>"What would you like? Tea, coffee? I think we have some orange juice in the fridge as well, I know it isn't the same as what was it? Pumpkin? Is that the one you have at Hogwarts?"<p>

"Yeah, mum, that's the one," Finn said, stretching himself out on the armchair, totally at ease as Carole fussed around him, shooing his feet away which he had attempted to rest on the table.

"Coffee would be great, thanks," Blaine said in a small voice, glancing warily at Kurt as though there was a possibility that it could have been the wrong answer.

"Make that two. Kurt, put the kettle on would you?" Burt asked as he smiled briefly and crossed over into the living room with the others.

Kurt gave him an unimpressed look; "I've been even home for two minutes and you're making me get you a drink already? It's like I was never away."

Burt chuckled, "That's not true; it's a whole lot louder around here when you are."

"Well, at least I know that my presence is known," Kurt said cheerfully as he twirled around and towards the kitchen.

Blaine stood awkwardly for a moment, glancing towards the living room where the others sat, then ducking his head before any of them noticed and following Kurt.

"What are you doing?" The younger boy asked him as he appeared in the doorway, "Go and sit down, I'll bring out your coffee. I think I'll put some toast on as well, I'm starved."

He pulled out some bread and popped it into a strange metal contraption Blaine did not recognise.

"I don't know what to do," Blaine confessed, tapping the counter with his fingertips as a nervous habit.

"Well, I'd suggest sitting and talking, for a start," Kurt laughed, "Come on, they won't bite, you were fine a moment ago on saying hello. You go sit down and they'll just ask you the generic 'when did you two meet, then?' 'what do you like best at school?' 'any plans for the future?' malarkey and you just have to answer. Is that so hard?"

"Yes," Blaine said, being difficult.

Kurt sighed as he poured water into the kettle and flicked a switch. Blaine cocked his head to one side, watching as he sorted out the machinery that Blaine had never seen used without magic.

"Chill out, come on, what can go wrong?"

"I might answer them wrong, are there good or bad answers to those questions? I have no idea; I've never done this before…" Blaine muttered, seemingly embarrassed by this admittance.

Kurt crossed over to him and put his hand on his arm comfortingly, "I know you haven't, but I'm here. Tell you what, you just help me for a moment and then we'll go back in together if you think that'll be less _scary_," He pulled a face at the last word and Blaine bit his tongue to stop himself smiling.

"Don't mock me!" He exclaimed but Kurt merely shook his head and danced back over to the cupboards where he pulled out a packet of biscuits.

"Everything all right in here?" Carole's head popped up around the corner.

"Oui, c'est très bon, merci!" Kurt said in a sing-song voice. Blaine raised an eyebrow at the upbeat mood of his boyfriend.

"Blaine, honey, I hope everything is okay. I just got Finn to take your bag into the guest bedroom; I hope that is all right? I'll show you to it later." She said warmly and Blaine turned returned her smile.

"Thank you, yes everything's great, you have a lovely home here." He said politely and Kurt stuck out his tongue at him so that Carole couldn't see.

"Thanks, we do our best." She peered back into the living room then scoffed and rolled her eyes, "Oh look! There's a game on, what a surprise. I wouldn't expect much out of your father and brother for another hour or so, Kurt!"

Kurt laughed as he arranged the biscuits in concentric circles on a china plate, "Some things never change."

Kurt looked up at Blaine, "Mind grabbing the toast a second? I'm afraid it might have burnt."

"What do I do?" Asked Blaine a little confused.

"There's a button on the side, press it and they'll pop up."

Blaine crossed over to the odd machine and pressed the button as asked and let out a small scream as the two pieces of toast jumped up.

Carole couldn't help but giggle. "You've never used a toaster before?"

"Blaine's from an all-magical family, so he's not used to having to use any of this stuff, they do everything with magic." Kurt explained as he grabbed the toast and began to spread them.

"Weird," Blaine said, looking at the toaster as though it were some kind of animal.

"Must be nice being so free from chores all the time," Carole said just as the kettle whistled to signal the water having boiled.

Kurt grinned and said to Blaine. "Just pick it up and pour it into the mugs on the side, they have everything else in them."

Blaine sneered at him jokingly, "Yeah, okay, no need to be so patronising."

Kurt turned around to continue his own tasks before he heard a more alarming scream from behind him as Carole darted forward to stop the kettle falling to the floor.

"No, sweetie, you can't touch that part, it's hot; you use the handle!" She said as Blaine shook his burning fingers, biting his lip from the pain.

Kurt dropped the knife and went over to him, taking Blaine by the shoulders.

"Okay, let's keep you away from kitchen appliances, shall we? We'll go run your hands under the tap in the bathroom."

And he steered Blaine out of the room, shooting Carole an apologetic look as they exited.

* * *

><p>The cool water ran over Blaine's fingertips as Kurt fumbled around in his bag for a potion he had made last term, which he still had part of left and would soothe Blaine's burns.<p>

"Why did you not just use magic, you idiot?" Kurt said in a soft voice as he turned off the tap and applied the vialled liquid delicately to the patches of reddening skin.

"I don't know, she's probably not used to seeing magic since you and Finn aren't of age yet. I didn't want to freak her out."

"Well, no offence honey, but acting like a muggle isn't doing you the world of good either," Kurt said as the potion gave off an unpleasant stench and he wrinkled his nose.

Blaine was silent as the liquid absorbed into his skin until he finally made a noise of exasperation and buried his head in his hand.

Kurt could only just make out his muffled groan:

"This is going terribly."

"You just need to relax, stop trying so hard, apparently it makes you lose all forms of common sense," Kurt said, crouching down next to Blaine where he was sat on the edge of the bathtub and taking his newly mended hands in his.

Blaine smiled at him slowly, but still looked upset with himself.

Kurt gazed down as the injuries slowly healed themselves. "You know what this reminds me of?"

"The first time we spoke," Blaine replied automatically. "Just the other way round; now you're the one helping me."

"Yes, also the fact that your wounds are self inflicted and not caused by a deranged Slytherin."

Blaine pursed his lips at the mention of Karofsky but Kurt simply wrapped his hands around his, which were now pain-free. "Blaine, I know that you're wildly out of your comfort zone here, but whether it is a crazed bully or having to meet your boyfriend's family, I think your advice on facing your fears and confronting the things that are holding you back still applies. I needed to try and get Karofsky off of my back, and you need to try and get rid of your nerves so that you can see that there's really nothing here to be afraid of, okay?"

Blaine smiled at him. "Courage, right?"

"It's what we Gryffindors are supposedly made of," Kurt quoted his own words back to him.

Blaine reached down to pull Kurt gently by his elbows so that their faces could become level once more.

"Thank you; I know that I am just being silly."

"You are, yes," Kurt grinned as Blaine closed the tiny gap between them with a kiss.

* * *

><p>Hello!<p>

Are ya feeling the Christmas spirit? Are ya? Well, if you're not you best get on it, because the Christmas episode is next and you better feel festive. Also, because it's on MY BIRTHDAY mwahahaha timing is awesome. So, get ready for a couple of sweet chapters, and enjoy them while they last because DOOM IS APPROACHING. I thought I'd save it until after Christmas though, because I don't want to blacken the holiday period. Okay, I'm making it sound worse than it is. Not actually too depressing for a while, it will just be drama. Drama drama drama.  
>Oh, oh, oh do you know what else Christmas means?<p>

DOCTOR WHO SPECIAL.

Ahh yeah, rocking it.  
>Also, who else keeps re-watcing the hunger games trailer? Gives me shivers every time. Forcing my best friend and sister to read them so that I can talk about it more!<p>

Also, Samcedes is back! So in this story we have David, but I totally ship them on the show, because I didn't put Sam in here, which now I kind of wish I had because I love him. I also love Puck, but I didn't want to override this with all of them, maybe I'll drop them in somehow if it's appropriate but not just going to throw characters in willy-nilly. Puck and Shelby need to stop though, it's kinda weird... Still want Lauren back :(

Blaine's anger though... I'M IN A RAAAAAGE! THIS IS THE MADDEST I'VE EVER BEEN!

Truth.

When's that Threequel? WHEN?

Sorry, I'm in a buzzy mood. Need to go outside and run around in circles...

Thanks for reading, reviewing etc. Keep it up! Let me know if I am slowly destroying you inside because you love it or hate it and it's making you hate Glee all together! Yeah, I know, like that would ever happen :P


	34. Chapter 33: Mistletoe

Chapter Thirty-Three: Mistletoe

(Blondfire: Underneath The Mistletoe)

* * *

><p>Blaine walked down the passages of Hogwarts, Kurt's hand firmly within his grasp. His boyfriend laughed airily and then bent down to place a soft kiss on his cheek before bounding off like a gazelle in the opposite direction, offering him a cheerful wave before he departed.<p>

"Where are you going?" Blaine called, his voice echoing off of the walls, but Kurt made no reply and continued to dance his way down the hall before suddenly disappearing behind a stone pillar.

Blaine looked around the corridor he was now following and his brow furrowed. He could have sworn that they were winding in a more complex pattern than he was accustomed to on a normal day at school. As he walked further the walls seemed to shrink, closing in on him, the air around him becoming tighter with them. Soon he found his feet running in panic, and yet little progress was being made; it was as though he was speeding down a conveyer belt, which was whirring in the opposite direction. A figure loomed ahead of him and he had to squint to see it, since it was suddenly dark at the end of the corridor, and their face was concealed.  
>For a moment he thought his own face was directly in his path, a concept that baffled him. Then, as he neared, painstakingly slowly towards the figure, the features altered and he found his limbs pushing with new effort as they tried to bolt towards the newly realised form.<p>

"Nathan!" He called, but the figure stared blankly passed him and then turned away.

"Nathan! Wait!" He shouted, reaching out his hand into the blackened night, which seemed to grow as the lanterns that lined the walls began to flicker and die, one by one.

"Nathan! Please!"

The figure turned his head but when he did so the features had shifted once more.

The disapproving look of his father sent an icy shot through him as Mr Anderson's gaze diverted to settle on something to his right. Kurt had returned and he stared back at Blaine's father, who turned his head again, expressionless and melted into the night.  
>Kurt's face fell and tears welled in his eyes.<p>

Blaine tried to call after his father, to hurl abuse at him hurting Kurt's feelings, but no sound came out and soon Kurt had gone again as well and the conveyer belt suddenly shot backwards at lightening speed so that he lost his footing and flew backwards like the release of a slingshot-

Blaine sat up suddenly as his head thwacked onto the sideboard with considerable force by his bed.

"Mother f-" He cursed as his hand shot to where he was sure a lump would be soon to form.

He wiped his brow where he now realised a thin layer of sweat had formed.

He groaned and put both hands to his face. Great. Just what he needed at that moment: nightmares.

Well, all in all the day before hadn't turned out too horribly, they had merely watched the game, which he had enjoyed and then sat down to dinner which had been quite pleasant actually. Everyone had been very welcoming, but Blaine had found himself quiet on several occasions as the tight-knit family joked with one another. They had tried to include him, and he had tried to be involved, but he still felt out of depth and knew it'd take him a little while to calm himself completely. Kurt seemed happy with his progress, and that was what really mattered. Finn had even told him not to sweat it so much when they had said goodnight.

He was being ridiculous.

He was also insanely thirsty, he now realised, and so he pulled himself out of bed (figuring that he wouldn't manage to return to his dreams or otherwise any time soon) and left the room to go to the kitchen.

He realised, as he walked, that his hands were clammy and shaking slightly from the dream and so he shoved them into his pockets and swallowed hard. J_ust a dream, just a dream, just a dream._

It was very quiet in the house and he still felt extremely wary of the room where he had caused himself an injury – to which his bump on the head could now be an addition. Honestly, he was a walking disaster at the moment.

He managed to find the light switch: so far so good. Then he went over to where they kept the glasses (he had seen Carole take one out earlier that evening) and then gave up and just pointed his wand at the glass.

"_Aguamenti_," He whispered and water poured from the tip.

He smiled, deciding this to be a much simpler and probably safer tactic, and took a sip.

"Is the tap really so complex?"

A voice sounding from behind him caused Blaine to whirl around and in doing so he slopped the remaining water in his glass down the front of his pyjamas.

Burt couldn't help but laugh, but he stifled it so as not to wake the rest of the house.

"Here," He said, taking the glass and filling it up with water the muggle way. "See, pretty straight forward."

"Thank you, Mr Hummel, and sorry – did I wake you?" Blaine stammered.

"For the tenth time, you can call me Burt!" He chuckled, "And no, I got a call from some idiot who thinks that 3am is a good a time as any to see whether his car is fixed yet. What do they think I am? A 24 hour store or something?"

"Called you on a telephone, right?" Blaine asked, using his hands to mimic the action he had seen on the muddle television last night. "That thing with the speaker so you can hear people really far away, even without shouting or anything."

Burt smiled, "Wow, a teenager who doesn't know how a phone works, your parents must love you."

Blaine smiled, but a reminiscence of a certain part of his dream invaded his mind at that moment and he averted his gaze.

He wasn't all together sure if Burt noticed or not, but in any case he chose that time to change the subject. "So, can't sleep?"

"Something like that, yeah." Blaine said.

"I hope that bed in the spare room is okay, I know it isn't much, but it's all we have, I'm afraid."

"No, no, really it's fine. Great actually. I just woke up randomly and wanted some water and..." Blaine lifted the glass to stop any further word babble escaping his lips.

Burt nodded and pulled out a chair at the table, inviting Blaine to do the same with a gesture of his hand.

Blaine pursed his lips as he sat, glancing nervously around the room, Burt seemed to survey him for a moment.

"I take it that this is the first time you've done this sort of thing from all the… twitchiness." Burt said.

Great. Now he was being obviously twitchy. Blaine wanted to dive into his water glass and drown right there and then.

Hmm - perhaps a little extreme.

"Well, if it helps at all, this is kind of new for me too," Burt said, shrugging a little awkwardly himself.

"Yeah, I guess so," He replied, not really knowing the correct way to respond, if there was one at all.

"Can I be straight with you, Blaine?" Burt asked and the Gryffindor Chaser looked up at him and nodded once. "I'm sure it may seem like I'm kind of together with this whole thing, that I know what I'm doing and that it's been easy enough to come to terms with this stuff. I'm not going to play games here, Kurt and I have had a tough time with things in the past, it hasn't all been laughs and jokes around here. With Finn too, mind, but Kurt's had a pretty bad time with things over the years. You know, I do my best and I try to help him out when I can, but I won't pretend that I've known exactly how to do that for a lot of it. We try and guide each other through things, and a lot of the time we miss the mark and he's been upset with me a lot because I haven't been able to adjust to everything as quickly as I should have."

Blaine listened quietly, but even as Burt expressed these difficulties he had the feeling that Kurt's father didn't give himself enough credit, an attribute which could at times be possessed in his son when it came to questioning his own strengths.

"I'm just trying to level with you, put you at ease a bit, because I think you might feel that you're coming into this solid unit, but it hasn't always been that way. You are just another part of this that I have to get used to, just as you have to get used to me. That make sense?"

"Yes, we're all out of our comfort zones I suppose." Blaine answered.

Burt nodded. "Exactly. Even so, I want to make it clear; I love my son very much. I will do anything to protect him from harm and the last thing I want is to see him in any kind of mess like he has been before."

Blaine's eyes narrowed. Burt seemed to be hinting towards something, and the vocalist guessed the subject matter before the words escaped Mr Hummel's mouth.

"You wouldn't happen to know anything that was going on with him last year, would you?"

Even though he had perhaps predicted what Burt was getting at, that in no way prepared him to answer such a loaded question.

Burt sat back in his chair and scrutinised Blaine's expression, which was suddenly downcast.

"You, err, you noticed that, huh?" Blaine asked in a small voice. He began to feel panic rise within him. If Kurt hadn't divulged the information, it was hardly his place.

"Kurt thinks that he has the wool pulled over my eyes a lot of the time, that I don't see when something's bothering him. He seems to think that just because I don't call him out on it directly, that I don't know something's up. I'll admit, I'm not always so clued in to what's going on inside his head, but I'm not an idiot. I don't think anyone could have missed the state he was in this time last year."

"I don't know what to tell you…" Blaine said after a deep breath, intertwining his fingers agitatedly on the tabletop.

"Did you have anything to do with why he was so upset?"

Blaine's eyes flew up at that moment, wide open and shocked. "N-no, sir, no of course not! I wasn't- I mean, Kurt and I only really knew each other around February. I had never spoken to him before-"

The rush of words came out in a tumble and Burt quickly held up his hand. His face seemed to have relaxed a little as he watched the boy before him, slightly amused.

"Okay, okay, I believe you. Sorry, I didn't mean to offend you - or accuse. I just wanted to be sure."

Blaine bit his lip. "I'm sorry too, I just-" He took a deep breath. "I would never want you to think that I could have caused _that_."

"So you do know what went on there?" Burt asked.

Blaine bowed his head and ran a hand through his hair. "I…"

"All right, it's okay, I get that you don't want to betray his trust. It's fine, if he wants to talk to me about it he should do it himself, right?"

Blaine looked up once more and nodded, relieved.

Burt held his gaze for a moment. "Well, I will just have to wait in suspense then, I suppose."

Blaine grimaced. This was not exactly the idealised first one-on-one conversation with his boyfriend's father.

It took him a moment to realise that Burt was still watching him. He looked up slowly, feeling like he was under investigation still.

Burt, however, seemed fairly cheery all of a sudden.

"I won't pretend that I'm totally cool with the idea. I mean, I don't think a parent can ever be totally reassured this early of someone their son or daughter brings home, but don't think I haven't also noticed how different Kurt is now, in a good way, I mean."

Blaine could do nothing but stare up at him, having no idea how to even fathom a response to that.

This seemed to amuse him further as he pulled his chair back and stood up. "I guess that you may not see it, but I haven't seen him so happy in a long time, so you must be doing something right."

Blaine felt his cheeks redden at that moment as he tried to suppress the grin that wanted to break onto his features.

"It works both ways." Blaine said simply, taking another sip of water just so that he could avoid eye contact after the confession.

"Yeah, all right kid, I don't need the gory details." He patted Blaine gently on the back once as he exited the room.

* * *

><p>Kurt hummed as he turned up the volume dial on the radio. He zipped back over to the pan where his scrambled eggs were simmering delicately. Assured that they were in good condition he span around merrily and darted around the breakfast table, laying the plates and cutlery at lightening speed before jumping back towards the toaster which popped just as he made it over, so that he could catch the bread as it sprung into the air.<p>

"That'll be cold by the time the others drag themselves down here, you know." A voice yawned behind him.

Kurt glanced over at Finn who stretched his long arms out to the side.

"That's fortunate, because this piece is for me," Kurt said, biting into the toast merrily. "And why are you here already? You're usually in bed until noon."

Finn shrugged. "Smelt bacon."

"Well, it isn't ready yet, and are you sure it's that? Or are thoughts of a certain tiny-in-size-but-big-in-arrogance brunette keeping you awake?"

Finn lobbed a spoon at him, which Kurt ducked to avoid easily, laughing and taking the outburst as confirmation.

"It's not as though you can pretend - we were all there," He told his brother mockingly.

"Yeah, well, doesn't mean I'm any the wiser of what to do now." Finn muttered as he crossed over to the kitchen unit, attempted to pinch some cheese, which Kurt had grated, only to have his hand swatted away fiercely.

"How do you mean?" Kurt asked, poking at the bacon now and checking the eggs.

"Well, we won't see each other until term starts again, what if she changes her mind?"

Kurt grabbed orange juice from the fridge and started pouring it out into a jug.

"Flick the kettle on." He instructed. "She's not going to change her mind. Why would she?"

Finn shrugged. "Might be some slimy Slytherin sneaking around her at home, too."

"She only went off with Jesse because she thought you'd gone off with Quinn, things are different now; you both like each other, so quit being so darned paranoid, be happy and put some more bread in the toaster." Kurt ordered as he popped teabags in a pot and filled a jug of milk, placing that and the juice on the table.

"I guess you're right…" Finn said, still sounding a little unconvinced.

"I usually am," Kurt said, turning off the hobs and pouring the contents of the pans out onto plates. "I can hear Dad and Carole coming down. Can I trust you to place these on the table without eating them while I go and wake Blaine?"

"Probably not," Finn said, but when Kurt fixed him with a steely glare he corrected himself. "Yeah, okay, okay. Fine."

Kurt beamed and skipped off down the hallway, passing Burt and Carole as they walked into the room.

"Someone's chirpy this morning," Carole commented.

Finn shook his head.

Kurt quickly stuck his head back around the door looking at Finn, "If it's still bugging you, then write her a letter or something."

"Write who a letter?" Carole asked suddenly.

Finn's face suddenly fell and Kurt grinned. "No one!"

He ran out of sight again before Finn could throw any more kitchen utensils.

* * *

><p>Kurt knocked lightly on the door, but when he got no answer he merely pushed it open carefully.<p>

Blaine was curled up, sound asleep and Kurt smiled to himself as he crossed over to the bed, knelt next to him and kissed his forehead to rouse him from his dreams.

Blaine stirred and peeled his eyes open. They fluttered for a moment before settling on Kurt's face.

"Mornin'," He whispered, still dozey, lifting his hands to rub his eyes and stretch.

"Breakfast is ready," Kurt replied.

"Cool," Blaine said, shutting his eyes and yawning, stretching his arms out in front of himself.

Then his expression turned very grave as he sat up and looked at Kurt, who was alarmed by this sudden alteration, needing to dart out of the way so that he wasn't hit.

"You need to tell your Dad about Karofsky." He said out of the blue.

"What?" Kurt asked, surprised.

"You never told him. He needs to know."

"What? Why are you bringing that up?" Kurt was perplexed by this sudden demand. Why on earth would that be his immediate thought as soon as he woke up?

"He knows something was up with you last year, I'll explain later, just promise me that you'll tell him."

Kurt pursed his lips.

"Please?" He looked into Blaine's eyes, which were struck by a sudden adamant glint.

The countertenor sighed. "Okay. I will, but not now, not with you around as well. I think it's all a bit much and I'd rather talk to him on my own about it."

Blaine seemed to hesitate for a moment, but eventually he seemed to accept this answer as the best he could settle for.

"Thank you," He said.

"Now will you come and eat something?"

Blaine grinned. "Do you even have to ask?"

* * *

><p>"No, Finn, you can't hang that there; it sets off the whole balance!" Kurt snapped, yanking the bauble from his brother's hand.<p>

"Ouch!" Finn said, giving him a filthy glare. "Why are we doing this anyway? The tree was decorated when we got here and isn't it a bit late to start fiddling with it now, on Christmas Eve?"

"No. And yes it was, but not to my standards." He looked over at his father quickly, who was sat back in the lounge chair sipping egg nogg. "No offence."

He waved his hand casually. "None taken. I have long learnt that around here anything to do with the aesthetic is always ruled by you."

Kurt smiled delightedly and hopped down from the stool that he had stood upon to hang the decorations.

"So you just put the oven mitts on and then take the tray and – perfect!" Carole's voice could be heard from the kitchen. "Now just turn the timer on. There you go!"

Kurt looked up just as Blaine and Carole returned to the living room.

"I cooked!" He said gleefully, eyes darting around the room but settling on Kurt who he sat down beside cross-legged on the carpet. There were not enough seats, but this position was closer to the fire regardless.

"Congratulations," Finn said, still trying to hide a snicker.

"Well, not exactly, it isn't done yet. I guess we just wait and hope that I don't give everyone food poisoning!" Blaine joked, but then his face faltered as he started to take that as a rather conceivable option…

"You won't," Carole told him. "I was there the whole time; it will be great, just you wait. Of course you'll have to wait for tomorrow to eat it."

Blaine shook his head. "How come you do it all now?"

"Well, it isn't all done, we have to reheat some things tomorrow and then cook some things from scratch, so best to get half of it out of the way."

"I never knew food could be so complicated…"

"That's why I just prefer eating it," Finn commented and Kurt rolled his eyes.

"You wait until you try Carole's roast potatoes – nothing will ever measure up afterwards!" Burt said, patting his stomach in anticipation.

Carole stood behind him and leant against the back of his chair, clearly quite pleased with the evaluation of her culinary skills.

"It's true," Finn agreed, "The house elves at Hogwarts do put in a good effort, but they can't steal that from you, mum."

"You have elves cook your meals?" Burt shook his head, amused, "The more I learn about this school, the weirder it gets. Owls deliver your mail, elves cook your food, giants teach your classes, and goblins take care of your finances. Next you'll be telling me that pixies shine your shoes."

"Nah, pixies would never be so accommodating," Kurt assured him.

"Of course," He said, as if that made total sense even though he still found it ludicrous. "Well, if it's all right with you all, I think I'll head off to bed, see if a dragon has fluffed my pillow since I have been away from it."

"You wouldn't want that, they'd probably claw it to tatters, or scorch it to dust." Blaine offered, joining in.

Burt sighed, "I'll think twice before I hire one as a maid then."

"Make it wear an apron." Finn said.

"I don't think it would fit in the house…" Kurt added.

"Well, I don't think it'd be welcomed in," Carole laughed, "I think I may head up as well."

"Shame, dragons are very misunderstood creatures."

"Don't, Blaine, you're beginning to sound like Hagrid." Kurt said, nudging him playfully as the two adults ascended the stairs to bed, shaking their heads at their magical children.

Blaine pushed him back, "No I'm not, I just don't think they're as bad as everybody thinks."

Finn raised an eyebrow at them both and pushed himself up from the sofa. "Yeah, I think I'm going to hit the hay as well - leave you two alone."

"Hey come on, we're just messing about, you can stick around." Kurt said, worried that they had been excluding him.

Finn just shook his head, "Nah man, I'm okay, I need to get some rest anyway."

"Need to start work on that letter more like." Kurt called as Finn walked out the room.

He took a step back so he was in view again. "No, I need to be up early so I'm the first here for presents…" Then he paused. "… And I already sent the letter."

Kurt beamed at him but he disappeared before his brother could say anything.

The countertenor clapped his hands together and looked back at a rather sceptical expression painted on Blaine's face.

"What have you been up to now?" He asked.

"Oh nothing," Kurt breathed joyously. "Just Cupid's work."

"Cupid's work," Blaine snorted in repeat, earning him another shove at his dismissal of his boyfriend's great deeds to which he rolled backwards in laughter.

"You'll see," Kurt scoffed, looking away.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Blaine said, words still escaping through chuckles as he sat back up again and put a hand over his. "I'm sure the flying cherub archer is very proud of you."

Kurt rolled his eyes as Blaine continued to stifle laughter. "Quite finished?"

"Kind of," Blaine said as he leant forward and kissed him softly on the lips.

When he leant back Kurt looked even more peeved than he had done before;

"You know it's really not fair when you do that."

"Ah, quit your whining," Blaine said nonchalantly, "It's time to be jolly!"

Kurt tried to keep up his sulky demeanour but failed because he was secretly thrilled that the boy beside him had relaxed so greatly over the past week of being here. He seemed more like his old self and was getting along so well with Burt and Carole. It was a huge relief after their first day here - that was for sure.

Blaine's grin seemed to widen for a moment and Kurt suddenly became wary. He knew that look.

"….What?"

He was on his feet in a moment and span around to face Kurt again.

_Let's go out into the cold_

_The happy lights of Christmas trees_

He flicked one of the baubles, which caused Kurt to jump to his feet and straighten the ornament, but Blaine just grabbed his hand and twirled him round.

_Warm us from the frosty breeze_

_Leaving footprints in the snow_

Kurt caved and took up the next line.

_That lead you back to my house_

_Underneath the mistletoe_

They both looked skywards where no mistletoe was hung and so Kurt went over to the decoration box and while he did so Blaine continued:

_Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas_

_To you…_

…_To you_

Kurt finished as he held up the green leaf and red berries but hid it behind his back again as Blaine stepped forward.

_Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas_

_To you…to you_

Kurt stepped around him but took his hand in the process.

_Smiling faces that we know_

_All the presents that we see_

_Sitting by the Christmas tree_

_Singing songs about the snow_

_Then we'll go back to my house_

_Underneath the mistletoe_

Blaine snatched the mistletoe from behind his back and held it far behind him, arm still linked to the younger boy.

_Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas_

_To you_

…_To you_

_Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas_

_To you_

Kurt tried to step forward but Blaine escaped and darted to the other side of the room.

…_To you_

_And then we'll go back to my house_

_And then we'll go back to my house._

_Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas_

_To you…_

_To you…_

Blaine leapt up onto the stool and reached up to fasten the mistletoe onto the light on the ceiling fixture.

_Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas_

_To you…_

_To you…_

Kurt held out his hand, which Blaine took, stepping down from the stool until he and Kurt both stood directly beneath it together.

_And then we'll go back to my house._

"Merry Christmas," Blaine said softly.

"-Eve," Kurt corrected quietly.

"Whatever."

* * *

><p>You readers, what up?<p>

I'll tell you what's up - MY RAGE.

Kidding! I just wanted to talk like Sue.

Well, half kidding.

What

Was

In

The

Effing

Box?

Well, no, I know what was due to snooping, but that's not even the point, is it? Is it? No. Matthew Morrison you suck. Gawd dang it.  
>I was going to write a scene in here with a Christmas present, but it made me too angry, besides, I think once we get to Valentine's you'll find the gift giving sufficient. Oooooh spoilers. Mwahahaha.<p>

It's Christtttmaaaas! Be Merry.  
>I know I have been shocking in updating, and apologies, but the next will be up shortly as it is the last Christmassy instalment before the holiday cheer is over and the drama ensues.<p>

Happy Holidays!

I'd write more, but I am KNACKERED. Just got back from Uni and I need sleep man. And to catch up on Merlin. So much to do, so much to do. Anyone read Name of the Wind? My friend leant it me and reckons I'll love it. I shall seeeee. Nyuuuum Hunger Games movie in three months BOO YAH. And HP5 was on today. Is this what heaven tastes like?

No. Because Glee isn't on for another month.  
>Fuck you RIB (but fair enough, cast members need a holiday too) but still!<p>

ANGRY.

I need that woman's sign.

Sigh.

I'm actually in a good mood, I swear, I'm just tired.

Gonna shut it now. Keep reviewing! Love youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!  
>"I'm not a box. There are more than four sides to me." Yes Kurt, we know, but we want to know what was in the box GIVEN to you!<p>

Box, Box, Box, why am I in a box ?


	35. Chapter 34: Christmas and Clean Slates

Chapter Thirty-Four: Christmas

(Faber Drive – It Ends)

* * *

><p>Christmas day went by surprisingly smoothly, nobody was food poisoned by Blaine's novice cooking and Finn didn't manage to disturb a single one of Kurt's elaborate decorations. Well, none that the countertenor actually realised, since Finn convinced Blaine to use a repairing spell after he knocked over the glass reindeer on the mantelpiece. Blaine thought that it was definitely unlike a normal Christmas at Hogwarts, but that by no means made it any worse. It was strange, but cosy and relaxing, everybody seemed at ease and it was nice to get through a family holiday without the slamming of doors or finding his mother crying alone in the study. He didn't even think much of those things, just allowed himself to enjoy the day, while Burt and Carole insisted that the three Gryffindor boys treat them with a round of carols after dinner, even though they had done so in the street the evening before.<p>

Owls had appeared in the morning delivering presents from all of their friends, including a Fanged Frisbee from Wes, which took them several minutes to catch as it flew out of the window and into the garden, causing them to panic that neighbouring muggles may be exposed to the ferociously enchanted toy.

* * *

><p>It was a week or so afterwards when Blaine was in his room, folding away some of his things in preparation for returning to Hogwarts for the next term. He found himself surprised that he was actually quite saddened to leave the comfortable Hummel home after having been so terrified of entering it initially.<p>

He looked up suddenly after hearing a knock at the door. He called out to allow his visitor entrance, expecting Kurt to walk through the doorway, when instead Finn came in awkwardly, spying the hallway carefully to make sure the coast was clear before closing the door.

Blaine gave him a suspicious look.

"Sorry, I don't want Kurt to see me."

"Why…?" Blaine asked, nonplussed.

He brought out a large envelope from behind his back, still sealed tight. "Because if he sees this I'll never hear the end of it."

"Rachel replied?" Blaine asked, dropping his scales unceremoniously into his trunk before crossing the room to look at the letter in Finn's hand. "You do realise that he'll ask you if you got a reply sooner or later."

"He already has, about twice each day."

"Wait, how long have you had this? And why is it so big?" Asked Blaine, perching on the end of his bed as Finn sat down cross-legged on the floor. The room was very small and so no other seats had been able to fit. He tapped the letter nervously against his thumb.

"About three days now. And I have no idea…"

"And it's still unopened?" Blaine asked.

"Well, yeah. I mean at first I was kinda angry, because at Christmas she just sent me that scarf like she did all of you guys, and I knew she'd have received the letter by then, and so I didn't get why she hadn't responded. So I wanted to ignore it, and now I just don't know if I want to read it."

"Okay… Well, you know that you'll have to see her in two days time regardless, and if you haven't read it… I don't think you want an angered Rachel Berry on your hands."

"No…" Finn admitted, turning the envelope over in his hands, but still not going near the seal.

He sat for a moment just staring at it and then his eyes travelled back to the older boy before him.

"Errr… Am I supposed to be doing something here?" Blaine asked.

Finn shrugged.

"How about you read it?" Blaine suggested, all though it seemed like obvious advice. "You'll hear what it says inevitably, whether on paper or it being said to you incessantly by her in person, only as I said if you've neglected it and she realises, it may be said to you in yells rather than politely."

Finn thrust the letter out towards him.

"You want me to read it?" Blaine asked, reflexively sitting back as though the letter was on fire.

"Yeah…out loud – but don't tell Kurt."

"Never?" Blaine thought it impossible to keep such information from him forever.

"Well, I don't know, I'll tell you if you can once I know what's in there."

Blaine hesitated a while longer, but eventually sighed, giving in and taking the letter to open.

_Dear Finn,_

_I am sorry that I did not reply to you sooner, I gather that you had expected a reply to accompany your Christmas present. I almost sent this then, but then I didn't know if your family would be around when it got delivered and if you would have wanted them to know. I don't know; it just didn't seem sensible._

_Of course, I have also been very busy with the Christmas play that was put on by our local theatre. Naturally, the other cast members were far below my higher standards, but I feel like watching my performance may have really helped them to get a glimpse of true talent that may never again grace their presence. _

_Even so, I have been thinking about you a lot, and no, what happened on the platform was not just a one-time thing for me. I hope that it was not for you either, and I am hoping by the sentiments of your last letter that I am correct in thinking that it was not._

_I hardly think that there is that much more to say on the matter, since we shall be seeing each other again very soon. We can talk more in person, also, you may find within my home made His and Her calendars, that I am sure you will be delighted by since they have been created by yours truly with the upmost of taste. _

_I hope you had a very Merry Christmas, and send my love to the family. _

_I will see you at Hogwarts,_

_Rachel xx_

Blaine handed the letter back to him, along with the calendar that he failed to hide a snicker at.

Finn yanked that away and put it behind his back, cheeks reddening.

"Does she always put a star next to her name?" Blaine asked.

"I guess…" Finn said, looking over the contents once more. "But that's good right? I mean, it sounds good… she sounds good."

"Sounds great," Blaine said firmly. "I don't think you have anything to worry about."

Finn let out a sigh of relief and seemed to relax greatly, even allowing a smile to creep over his features.

"Okay, you can tell Kurt." He said finally.

Blaine shook his head, grinning. "Nah, I don't think I'll deprive you the pleasure of that conversation, and make sure you show him the calendar."

Finn then proceeded to throw it at him.

* * *

><p>Kurt made his way out to the front of the house where they had a small porch. It wasn't really a porch, just a tiny area with wooded floor, most of which was precariously placed, and a barrier to lean on (at your own risk). No white-picket fence to speak of, but it was enough and he often resided there when he wanted some time to himself. Typically at these moments it was to brood over something that was particularly troubling him, but tonight he simply wanted to stay out in the cool air and look up at the blackened sky where the stars twinkled. His world seemed to be in a certain state of calm for now, even the air seemed still, with no breeze to speak of and the night was silent as though nothing could disturb its slumber.<p>

Kurt took a deep breath and drank in the tranquillity with only the hope that it would stay forever.

A gentle rapping broke the silence that had surrounded him, causing him to jump a little, turning around just in time to see his father open the door that he had just come through to stand here.

"Hey, Kiddo," He said in a whisper. "What you doing out here all alone?"

Kurt directed a reassuring smile towards him, since he knew the intention to his question was to make sure all was well, "Just doing some thinking, how come you're still up?"

"Thinking too, I guess," He said, walking up beside his son and leaning on the barrier with him – which then proceeded to creak threateningly, but remained motionless.

"About?" Kurt enquired, looking not at his father, but back towards the quiet street.

Burt chuckled a little, "You, I guess. Well, not so much thinking as worrying."

Kurt frowned but still did not look up, "Why are you worried?"

"Because it's my job to worry about you, Kurt, won't ever quit it I'm afraid." He smiled.

"There's nothing wrong," Kurt told him and for once he felt as though he was telling the statement completely truthfully, rather than being in his usual position of saying it as a lie to make his friends and family feel better and cease their constant enquiries.

"Hmm," Burt mused. "No, there doesn't seem to be, that's kind of what worries me."

Kurt couldn't help but laugh, "You're worried because of the lack of things to worry about?"

"Yes, it's far too strange."

Kurt shook his head hopelessly and returned his gaze to the horizon, which seemed to shimmer slightly from the glow of the flickering streetlamps on the far left side of their street.

They stood together for some time, not speaking to one another but without any awkwardness between them.

"You seem happy, Kurt," Burt stated simply.

Kurt raised his eyebrows, glancing at his father for the first time and answering calmly; "That's because I am happy."

"And this…Blaine, he's kind of the reason for that, huh?"

"He's definitely a contributing factor," Kurt replied, not needing to express quite how large a one.

Burt nodded. "He seems like a good kid, and if you're happy, I'm happy, I've always said that."

"But…" Kurt egged, knowing that the word was worming away inside his father's mind somewhere.

"But I want you to be careful, Kurt." He said rather sternly.

Kurt suddenly felt a wave of dread fill him. "Please don't let this turn into 'the talk'."

"What? Oh, no, that's okay. Err, no, we don't need to talk about _that,_" Burt said hurriedly, sounding rather flustered as Kurt ducked his head from embarrassment. "Ahh, no, well, that's important too, if you ever do decide to… you know. I don't mean that specifically though, Kurt, I just mean that you have to watch your heart sometimes. Just because someone seems perfect one day doesn't mean they will be that way tomorrow. These sort of things can cloud your judgement sometimes."

Kurt's brow furrowed and he stared up at his father, "Do you not like Blaine, Dad?"

Burt shook his head insistently; "No, that's not what I mean." He paused for a second to think over what he wanted to express. "What I mean to say is that for all intents and purposes, I can't see a reason why you should be in any danger here, as I said he seems like a good kid and he seems to really care about you from all I can gather, which is good, Kurt, really good. But even when two people care about each other, things can still get in the way, you can both still end up getting hurt, and I want you to be careful about that. I want you to be smart like I know you are and I want you to be prepared and to look after yourself and make sure that you know that you matter. I'm saying this as your Dad and as someone who just wants to look out for you, regardless of who it is you were with I'd be saying it just the same, okay?"

"Okay, Dad, I hear you," Kurt said, smiling and feeling more at ease.

There was a short pause once more.

"So… everything okay otherwise?" Burt asked, anchoring at something, and Kurt could tell straight away.

"Yes, all fine." He told him.

"School good?"

"Yup."

"Because if there was something going on, or something that had gone on at some point… you would tell me, wouldn't you, Kurt? Something that I'd need to know?"

Kurt hesitated. He thought over everything that had happened last year, the recent events of the past month at Hogwarts, his uncertainty about what could happen in this upcoming term since he had not spoken with Karofsky since he and Blaine had reconciled.

He had seen him around, but his old bully had kept his distance and his head down if they happened to be close by. He seemed to be concentrating hard on ignoring Kurt's existence just as he himself had made an effort to do a time before now. He was not sure what the correct approach would be, was not sure what to make of the fact that one of the reasons Blaine had made the effort to find him on the day they had made up was due to the Slytherin's words, his final realisation that his pursuit was fruitless.

He did not know how to feel about it either, how he should feel, mostly he just wanted to bury any thoughts of the matter and go on as though he did not exist which seemed to be the position Karofsky was taking up, but this did not seem fair on either party. Or even Blaine in a way. Probably closure would be the best course of action here, but a way to go about it would be impossible. Also, a part of him – and a rather large part at that – wasn't so fond of the idea. It was difficult, try as he might, to reserve positive feelings towards the boy who had put him through hell in a number of ways, so many in fact that he hardly knew which made him resent him the most. He did not solely loathe the Slytherin, but a certain amount of hatred would, he thought, always remain in his heart because of those events and he was unsure if he would ever possess the ability to forgive such circumstances.

Not least because of the damaging effect it had or could have had on Blaine as well, and the strain it had put on his friends, and the worry he was now realising had been inflicted on his family also.

Perhaps he had been naïve to think that his father would have neglected to notice the state he had been in before now. It was more his own hope that it would not be noticed that kept him from strongly considering that option and any outcome that could derive from it such as the question posed to him at that moment.

That moment which he had now taken far too long to deliberate in his mind.

"Kurt…" Burt pressed.

"Sorry," He said very quickly, not wanting the silence to withstand any longer. "I, err, I don't know. Not really, not anymore."

It wasn't exactly an entirely honest answer in itself, but the confession that something had been going on previously was enough to fill him with dread.

He could tell by the new tone of his father's voice that even though he had guessed that something had happened, confirmation of the fact only worsened the situation.

"I'm not going to force you to tell me, Kurt, but if it was something that put you in any danger, physically, emotionally or otherwise… I'd like for you to tell me."

"It's really nothing," Kurt tried. "Please, Dad, I know you want to look out for me and everything, and I know that no matter what I say it won't ever fully put your mind at rest, but I really don't think there's anything for you to worry about. I have Blaine and a great set of friends around me who would never let anything bad happen. There's really nothing for you to fear, and maybe I should have told you things before, and maybe I'll fill you in one day, but I don't think it is worth digging it all up now. I can only promise that if anything else happens, anything at all, if I feel even the tiniest bit unsafe, I will tell you straight away."

"I'm not happy about this, Kurt," Burt said gravely, his voice deepening as Kurt's own heightened in octaves.

"Seriously, I would tell you if there was anything you needed to know. You asked if you needed to know, and you don't."

Burt sighed. "I don't like it, but I trust you, and I am willing to take your word for it, but before this upcoming Summer is ended I want a full story of everything, that clear?"

Kurt flinched.

"Kurt?" It was one of those rare times where Burt fixed Kurt with a deadly stare which told him that there was no way to wriggle out of what he had commanded.

His son nodded.

"And you'll make good on your promise to tell me anything, even if it's a tiny worry, yes?"

Kurt nodded once more.

"Okay then," Burt said.

They stood in silence, Kurt looking at the hands, which twisted on the wood he rested on. Burt trying to steady his breathing.

"I'm sorry," Kurt whispered after a while.

"That's okay, Kurt, the main thing is that you're all right now. You are all right now, aren't you?"

"Absolutely," He said.

"Good."

Burt leant back against the barrier, taking a step behind his son and stopped once more before he put a hand on his shoulder comfortingly.

"He does really seem to care about you - Blaine I mean - and I'm really glad you found someone."

Kurt turned around.

"Thanks, Dad." He said, taking a step forward to hug his father.

* * *

><p>Karofsky stared down at his hands as he sat alone in the middle of the Slytherin common room. He had decided not to go home for Christmas; he didn't think he could handle the puzzled looks from his father which would only lead to questions about whether he was okay and why he had been acting out, why he was receiving owls from the school with information detailing odd behaviour and long periods of absence.<p>

He had been called into Professor Snape's office the other week where he had been told that if his presence in class did not increase in all subjects by the start of the next term, then he would be facing a serious risk of expulsion.

He had been waiting ever since for his mind to react to this news.

But why did it matter? What difference would it make whether he was inside Hogwarts or outside? Would either one make him any happier? Being away may, at least, prevent him from having to stare at _them _in every class. The punishment of being moved down a year had never seemed so cruel.

He sighed and twisted his wand in his hands. Though he may slight Hogwarts at any given moment when around his peers, who hated Dumbledore and most other members of the school, he did still love it here. Nothing that he could say to himself could convince him otherwise. He'd often act as though he didn't care, that it was inconsequential and that he'd be perfectly fine elsewhere, but the truth was he'd find it incredibly hard to leave this place. There was a reason why, when he had been feeling his worst this year, he had spent his nights wandering the hallowed halls.

Something about Hogwarts put him at ease, if only fractionally, and only for a short moment. Hey, it was better than nothing, right?

_Better than sitting here and moping and feeling sorry for yourself. _Dave scowled and tried to ignore the disgusted tone of his inner thoughts.

Well, what was he to do then?

He didn't want to leave; his gut feeling told him that, he wasn't about to be driven out of the only place, which gave him any sort of comfort, not by anyone. He wouldn't allow himself to be so weak.

Yet he was weak, in a way, or at least had been presented by a weakness that no amount physical strength or athletic training could have prepared him for, which is probably why it had taken him so off guard.

He slammed a fist on the table before him and exhaled deeply from his nostrils, clenching his jaw, angry with himself.

How was he supposed to figure all of this out? Who he was, what he wanted, how to act, what to do? None of it made sense anymore, like he was sitting in a thick mist, haze all around his head and he just allowed himself to succumb to the confusion, had given up or just forgotten how to fight it.

He'd always been good at fighting, but when it came to the situation with Kurt…well, his initial methods definitely hadn't worked out, not that he really knew the motivations behind that battle initially; he just acted on the only emotions he could comprehend last year. Rage and fear. Without really knowing the reasons behind them.

Then, once he'd figured it out, he was too late, and now it seemed as though he was losing this fight along with his grip on sense or reality.

Was he losing? Or had he lost? Why was he still fighting? Maybe when Kurt and Blaine had been fighting themselves it had been possible, he had a window, an opportunity. But now… He saw them together every day, or had done before they left for Christmas break, and what he did see was undeniable.

The window had been shut and bolted, no crevice to fracture, no part to unhinge. It was sealed off to him now, and his attempt to bang against the glass would only scar his fists.

Maybe he just had to accept that.

Yet the concept of this, of losing, of realising that he was on the failing side, the side that was shut off and isolated, that was not something that Dave Karofsky was familiar with.

_So clear silver moon_

_Wind moves through my room_

_Memories of Saturday (memories of Saturday)_

_Slight turn of her head,_

_Eyes down when she said,_

_She's going away, going away_

_I need to know this_

_Am I the fool, am I a victim?_

_I'd rather know,_

_You'd rather kiss him, good night, tonight, I'm blinded_

_I try, I tried_

_Is this the way, is this the way it ends?_

Dave stood up, lips pressed as he tried to process all of this. Was he the one completely in the wrong here? He had been so incensed by fury and disgust and jealousy that he hadn't allowed himself a moment to look at himself in this picture, to see what he was doing. Was he running down a path without any sense of direction or mind? Blindly falling into something that could hurt himself as well as others? Had he brought all of this on himself?

_Dark echoes inside,_

_Can't sleep through the night_

_All the words I heard you say (memories of Saturday)_

_Fade over the yard,_

_Lay under the stars,_

_Stuck down in this place,_

_Hands on my face,_

_I need to know this_

_Am I the fool, am I a victim?_

_I'd rather know,_

_You'd rather kiss him, good night, tonight, I'm blinded_

_I try, I tried_

_Is this the way, is this the way it ends?_

He beat his fist against a wall this time, he couldn't go on, it wasn't sane anymore, it was sheer madness. He had to stop. Even so, the thought of letting go… He tried with all his might but the idea caused one tear to fall down his cheek in spite of himself as those blue eyes swam unwillingly to the surface of his mind again.

_Get up and chase the vision_

_Stand up watch the world go by_

_Ahhh ahhh_

_You found, feel the reason_

_Black clouds are filling up my sky,_

_Ahhh ahhh yeahhhhh_

_Am I the fool, am I a victim?_

_I'd rather know,_

_You'd rather kiss him_

_Am I the fool, am I a victim?_

_I'd rather know,_

_You'd rather kiss him, good night, tonight, I'm blinded_

_I try, I tried_

_Is this the way, is this the way it ends?_

He sat back down again, burying his head in his hands and allowing himself to absorb it all, the futility of his mission for the last few months, and the reflection on what his actions had caused.

_Am I the fool, am I a victim?_

_I'd rather know,_

_You'd rather kiss him, good night, tonight, I'm blinded_

_I try, I tried_

_Is this the way, is this the way it ends?_

"Hey."

A voice behind him caused Dave's heart to leap into his throat in alarm as he jerked his head around.

A tall, thin, sleek black haired girl made her way very slowly down the staircase. Her arms were folded and a picture of bewilderment was painted as her expression.

She eyed him for a long moment, mouth hung slightly open as her eyes scanned his frozen form, having lost control of his movements in the panic of being discovered.

Then she closed her lips, tilted her head slightly to one side, raising an eyebrow.

"What, you didn't think you were the only one who decided to stay in the castle for the holidays, did you?"

A small smile presented itself on her face, which made Dave no less alarmed as he took a step back.

Santana shook her head.

"Honestly, Karofsky, if my impeccable intuition weren't enough, I'd probably still be able to guess your issues by the way you've been acting lately. And believe me…" She looked up at him very slowly, a flash of vulnerability passing across her features for the tiniest of moments before she unfolded her arms; "If there's anyone that can relate to them right now, she's standing right in front of you."


	36. Chapter 35: Whoops!

Chapter Thirty-Five: Whoops

(Pink – Fucking Perfect)

* * *

><p>"I just don't understand it." Trent said, shaking his head disparagingly as the three 7th years joined their friends and all sat themselves down around a table in the library.<p>

"Can't understand what?" Blaine asked, looking up from the books he and Rachel had been studying from.

"Why they keep letting you back in," Wes finished. "I mean honestly, you'd have thought they'd have come to their senses by now."

"Yeah, since when do they let Hobbits into Hogwarts anyhow?" David said, sliding in next to Blaine and giving him a nudge.

"Well, they do say that entry is all in favour of equality…" Kurt said quietly in monotone, not looking up from his work.

"Still, there's a limit," Wes sneered, plonking himself next to the younger boy, "And what is with you working so hard? It's the first day back - jeez."

Before Kurt could answer, David chimed in for him: "He and Blaine have clearly been far too busy to spend any time on studying over the holidays."

All three boys started laughing loudly, earning a hiss from Madame Pince.

Finn looked determinedly in the other direction and Rachel tried to hide a smile before she reached out and took the tall Keeper's hand. He seemed a little surprised by the gesture, smiled himself and went a deeper shade of red.

"Surprised you managed to find your way in here Wes, when was the last time you picked up a book?" Blaine asked casually, unphased by their teasing.

"Who needs books?" Wes asked, folding his legs up on the table and leaning back in his chair; "It's all up here."

He tapped his forehead smugly. Kurt lifted the hand with his wand in, still without looking up and flicked it so that the chair gave way and Wes went crashing to the floor.

Kurt looked up momentarily to smirk before returning to his papers.

Madame Pince shushed them very loudly this time and walked away muttering something that involved the word 'rapscallions'.

Wes sat back up on his chair, rubbing his shoulder and sulking silently.

"Have you guys seen Brittany?" Trent enquired. "I haven't seen her since we got back, except for in the Great Hall yesterday evening."

They all shook their heads, nonplussed apart from Rachel; "She was in Arithmancy this morning."

"Brit takes Arithmancy?" David asked, trying to stifle a laugh.

Rachel gave a look that affirmed his question and also showed that no; she did not seem to benefit from the class.

David shook his head chuckling but just then his attention was drawn away.

He got up and crossed the room at a fast pace.

The others all followed his direction and saw that Mercedes had just entered the library, undoubtedly looking for them all.

They all pretended to have not noticed, whereas really they all pricked up their ears and stole glances at the distant couple.

"Hey," Said David.

"Hi," Mercedes returned, seeming startled by the sudden approach that she clearly had not been prepared for.

"So…" David shuffled from side to side, looking everywhere but her face, "Did you like your present?"

Mercedes smiled slightly and lifted up her arm. There on her wrist sat a thin silver bracelet with an oval pendant in the centre, now glowing pink.

"It's lovely, very pretty." She answered shyly.

"It's appropriate too," David said hurriedly, a jolt of confidence hitting him from seeing that she had chosen to wear the gift. "That's a mood stone, you see, magically enchanted to give you an indication of the emotions of those closest to you. I mean, generally you seem pretty good at reading people and helping them out, but I know your friends are important to you so I thought that with that you could now be sure if any of them are hurt or in need. Or happy..."

He trailed off as Mercedes lifted the charm, scrutinising the colouring.

"What does pink mean?" She looked up at him for a moment and he bit his lip.

"Err, I guess you'll have to look it up," He said in a tone which clearly indicated that he knew exactly what pink meant and its affiliation with his present feelings.

Mercedes did not push the answer from him but merely smiled, embarrassed.

"Thank you, it's… it's a great gift."

David turned his head now to look at the table of their peers who were now unashamedly staring at them.

"Err… We should probably…"

Mercedes nodded as she walked towards them all. David following her in tow.

* * *

><p>Santana folded her arms as she made her way up the stone stairs, which led to the Clock Tower. She sighed and stared at her feet as they climbed each step at a slow pace. What was she doing? She was positive that no good could come from this. She had already been spending a great deal of her time sorting out the mess of a Slytherin boy Karofsky had turned into, which she might add, she should be awarded a medal for because that was no easy task and she did not often lend her time so generously. Perhaps she was going soft. She rolled her eyes; like that would ever happen. Oh well, she supposed finding someone equally miserable was to be taken as some kind of blessing, how exactly it was meant to be interpreted as so she hadn't quite figured out yet, however.<p>

Santana finally reached the tower and pulled herself up into the decking where a blond girl stood by the window, the sunset lighting her frame in a delicate orange glow.

She turned around at the sound of her friend's arrival and beamed widely.

Santana did not unfold her arms, merely fidgeted with them uncomfortably. "Listen, I have a Charms practical to prepare for tomorrow, so I can't stay long…" She said, attempting to make excuses while she did everything to avoid Brittany's gaze.

The Hufflepuff smiled and skipped forward, "This won't take long."

She took Santana by the hands and led her over to the stone step, indicating that she should sit upon it before walking back to the middle of the floor.

"What are you doing?" Santana asked suspiciously.

"A while ago you told me something," The Slytherin shuffled nervously but her friend continued, "Something important that I asked you to give me time to think over. You know, like how I need time to figure out how to spell words over four letters and remember how to tie my shoelaces. Anyway, I know you got kind of mad at me for asking that and I understand now, because I think that if things were different now, and it were me telling you, I'd be kind of upset too."

Santana stared at her, confused but unfolding her arms, "What do you mean?"

"I thought that maybe instead of saying the words to you directly I'd sing a song like you did for me, because then I can return the favour – plus they seem to be the new kind of fashion around here, and that's cool because songs are fun and help to keep away monsters in your closet."

Brittany smiled and took a deep breath.

_Made a wrong turn _

_Once or twice _

_Dug my way out _

_Blood and fire _

_Bad decisions _

_That's alright _

_Welcome to my silly life _

Brittany held her hands up and shrugged, then made a gesture to her head, mocking herself and causing Santana to break her resolve and laugh.

_Mistreated misplaced _

_Misunderstood _

_Miss "no way, it's all good" _

_It didnt slow me down. _

_Mistaken _

_Always second guessing _

_Underestimated _

_Look I'm still around _

Brittany tilted her head to one side and smiled as tears began to build up in the Slytherin's eyes, no laughter passing from her lips anymore as she was starting to realise…

_Pretty, pretty please _

_Don't you ever, ever feel _

_Like you're less than _

_Fuckin' perfect _

_Pretty, pretty please _

_If you ever, ever feel _

_Like you're nothin' _

_You're fuckin' perfect to me _

_You're so mean _

_When you talk _

Brittany walked over to Santana and took her hand, pulling her to her feet.

_About yourself, you were wrong _

_Change the voices in your head _

_Make them like you instead _

_So complicated _

_Look how we all make it _

_Filled with so much hatred _

_Such a tired game _

_It's enough _

_I've done all I can think of _

_Chased down all my demons _

_I've seen you do the same _

_Ooooh _

_Pretty, pretty please _

_Don't you ever, ever feel _

_Like you're less than _

_Fuckin' perfect _

_Pretty, pretty please _

_If you ever, ever feel _

_Like you're nothin' _

_You're fuckin' perfect to me _

Santana started to sing now, both of their hands now held together as she shook her head through the tears.

_The whole worlds scared _

_So I swallow the fear _

_The only thing I should be drinking _

_Is an ice cold beer _

_So cool in line _

_And we try, try, try _

_But we try too hard _

_And it's a waste of my time _

_Done looking for the critics _

_'Cause they're everywhere _

_They don't like my jeans _

_They don't get my hair _

_Strange ourselves _

_And we do it all the time _

_Why do we do that? _

_Why do I do that? _

_Why do I do that? _

Then they sang together, to each other, looking at the person opposite and knowing at that moment, exactly what they were thinking, like true best friends, but now something a little bit more.

_Yeeeeaaaahhh _

_Oooooooh _

_Oh pretty, pretty please _

_Pretty, pretty please _

_Don't you ever, ever feel _

_Like you're less than _

_Fuckin' perfect _

_Pretty, pretty please _

_If you ever, ever feel _

_Like you're nothin' _

_You're fuckin' perfect to me _

_You're perfect, you're perfect _

_Pretty, pretty please _

_If you ever, ever feel _

_Like you're nothin' _

_You're fuckin' perfect to me_

Their voices slowly faded out into the tower and they were left alone in silence, staring at one another.

"I think you're perfect Santana," Brittany said simply, "And I think that with that alone, I know the answer to what you asked me before, it seems kind of obvious now because there's no one else who will ever know and love me as much as you do. That's all I have to say."

* * *

><p>The snow had still been falling around Hogwarts since they had been back and that evening Kurt and Blaine had been down to Hogsmeade, to just relax and get away from the others who had started to become annoyingly intrusive. In all fairness they were doing so similarly to Finn and Rachel as well now, but since the two of them had made a hurried escape after dinner, the two boys thought they would also take a leaf out if their book.<p>

"Nervous?" Kurt asked as they made their way back to the castle at an extremely slow pace.

"Hmm?" Blaine asked, looking up from what must have been some deep thought.

"About tomorrow." Kurt said.

"Oh right, yeah,kind of, but it's only Ravenclaw – they came 4th last year."

The Gryffindor-Ravenclaw Quidditch match would be played the next day, another reason why it was probably a good idea to give Wes and Davis a wide berth whenever possible…

"True, but I wouldn't really want to play in this weather… Don't really fancy standing in it either if I'm honest." Kurt said, nuzzling his chin further into his scarf as he said so.

Blaine grinned and nudged him; "You better not be thinking of a way of worming your way out of coming to watch."

Kurt wrinkled his nose, "No, of course I'll go, but you'll have it on your conscience that I shall be standing there entirely miserable the whole time."

"Hey, at least you can wear a coat and a load of your numerous accessories to keep you warm, all I have is our flaming uniform." Blaine said, pulling a face.

"Yeah, but you'll be moving around."

"In ice-cold winds."

"You're just being difficult now," Kurt said, rolling his eyes.

Blaine laughed and put his arm around him, "You say that like you're not doing the exact same thing."

Kurt scoffed, "It's not like I have much choice in the matter, regardless of whether or not you and Finn were playing, I'd still have to go because not attending a Quidditch game at Hogwarts – perhaps with the exception of being dead, in detention or trapped in a broom cupboard – is like a sin or something."

Blaine nodded, "It's true, they'd probably even judge you for not having wheeled your sickbed into the stands if you fell ill."

"Har-har." Kurt said bitterly.

"And to think, you were so jolly in the holidays, now you've turned into some post-Christmas scrooge."

"Sports Scrooge," Kurt corrected.

Blaine shook his head, "I'm just offended that you don't wish to share in my enjoyment of the game, how can you not like flying?"

"To be fair, I've never actually been on a broomstick," Kurt said off-handedly.

"What?"

The violence of Blaine's reaction to his throw away comment caught Kurt off guard as they both came to a halt.

"What?" He said innocently, "No need to be so over-dramatic, you'd think I'd told you that I'd never tasted Butterbeer or something."

"Didn't you get flying lessons in your first year?" Blaine asked, ignoring his previous comment.

"Well, technically yes… Okay, so I sort of went on one once, but not really." Kurt bit his lip looking like he regretted having brought this up.

"What happened?" Asked Blaine, genuinely fascinated by this.

Kurt raised an eyebrow, "You don't want to know."

"Yes I do."

"Okay fine, you want to know, but I don't want to tell you." Kurt said quickly.

Blaine laughed and took a step towards him, "Come on, it can't be that bad."

Kurt sighed and stared at the floor.

"Okay… So, on my first flying lesson I tried to go on the broomstick, and it went up about a four or five feet in the air but then I kind of freaked out, and felt sick and fell off – I was fine, but then after that I was made to go to the Hospital Wing because I was still panicking and Madame Pomfrey said that I could be excused from future lessons if I wanted to."

"You must have been bad…" Blaine said after a moment or two, trying to stifle a laugh.

Kurt's eyes narrowed and he crossed his arms. "See, this is why I didn't want to tell you."

He turned forwards again and started to walk away, a little bit irritated.

Blaine rushed after him, still chuckling a little and said playfully; "Aww, come on, it's not so bad."

"Really?" Kurt asked flatly, not having any of it since he knew that Blaine didn't mean that. "See, you just think that I'm stupid now!"

"No I don't! Okay, maybe it is a bit bad, but that doesn't make me love you any less, and I don't judge you for it."

Kurt pulled up short and turned around on the spot to face the older Gryffindor.

"Excuse me?"

He stared at Blaine wide eyed but his boyfriend's eyebrows merely furrowed in confusion. "I don't judge you?" He said quizzically, wondering if that was the reason for Kurt's sudden alarm.

"No, before that part." Kurt said in a whisper.

Blaine seemed to retrace his words in his mind for a fraction of a second and then he stuck his tongue between his teeth slightly and his cheeks reddened. "Ah crap."

Kurt pursed his lips for a moment but then couldn't help but fail to keep up his anger as he broke into a wide smile. He cocked his head to one side and asked teasingly; "So you love me then, huh?"

Blaine pulled his hand through his hair nervously, "That's the first time one of us has said that, isn't it?"

Kurt nodded and the Chaser scrunched up his face.

"Damn, that should have been said in a far more romantic context…"

Kurt shrugged and closed the few feet that stood between them after he had just been trying to run away from the boy before him. He held his hands out and Blaine took them:

"It was good enough for me. I love you too, you know."

"Well, that sure is a relief." Blaine said, feeling less annoyed at himself as he leaned in for a kiss.

Unfortunately, that never came to be because at that moment a snowball smacked right into the side of his head.

The two Gryffindors had been so caught up in their own affairs that they hadn't even realized that they already stood before the castle walls and there was a pair of unfriendly faces looming down at them.

Peeves swooped towards them, sending his snowball towards Kurt this time, who ducked and missed it by inches, but stood up too fast and received a blow to the chin by the second missile propelled at him.

"Hehehe, poor sniveling 6th Years getting snow-bombed!" He cackled as he flew past, chucking the last few at them as they crouched down together so that they only hit their backs.

In the meantime, however, they heard a series of clicks and clunks from the castle walls and peeked to see Wes' face reappear in the first floor window.

"Good luck getting back in here for a good night's sleep before tomorrow's match, loser!"

And with that he and the Poltergeist disappeared.

Kurt and Blaine ran towards the doors and pummeled on the frame to try and gain entrance, but they were bolted shut.

"Oh, well this is just brilliant." Kurt muttered, tucking his mittened hands under his armpits to keep warm.

* * *

><p>Hagrid eventually found them outside a while later, through a stroke of luck since he was taking Professor Snape some ingredients he had found in the Forest to replenish his cupboards.<p>

"Whacha doing ou' here this time o' yer?" He asked, puzzled when he found them huddled together on the stone steps.

"Wes and Peeves." Was all Blaine had to answer before the half-giant rolled his eyes.

"Well, let's getcha both inside before Filch catches yer and gets yer in trouble, ey?" He said, bringing out his ring of keys and opening the door. "I'll take yer to your dorm and if anyone sees us I'll tell 'em you were helping me out with collecting these."

"Thanks, Hagrid." Kurt said, teeth still chattering as Blaine put his own scarf around him to try and warm him up some more.

"Best be getting' yer to the common room's fire a.s.a.p. ey?" Said Hagrid, shaking his head. "So, how you feeling about the game tomorrow, Blaine?"

"Vengeful." Blaine said in monotone as the last of the melted snow dripped from the front of his hair.

* * *

><p>I am so sorry that I haven't updated in ages! Back to university, fundraising and trying to get a job has invaded all of my free time! And whatever of that I have gained I have been spending on my novel, so apologies but hopefully you'll like this and that shall make up for it!<br>Can't write much here because I have dinner in 2 minutes but thanks to everyone who is still reading this, it means a lot and there's more to come! Next chapter will be a good'n and I will get it up as soon as I can!

Much love! Hope you're all enjoying the show and hating Ryan for cutting all the Klaine for Finchel. Grr. Will never happen here, I promise :P


	37. Chapter 36: Something's Coming

Chapter Thirty-Six: Something's Coming

(Christina Perri – Jar Of Hearts)

* * *

><p>Quinn walked down the corridor, books hugged tightly to her chest and keeping her head down. She no longer looked people in the eyes very often; it made her paranoid. She was always worrying about whether or not they were judging her. Coming back to school had been difficult, all though the questions she had had to answer from various people had been a lot worse. The names whispered around school grounds were equally as unpleasant.<p>

She just wanted to get on with life, and put the last miserable year behind her, unfortunately her peers had not been so willing. Brittany and Santana had been very supportive at least. Santana had even been in a good mood lately and wasn't being nearly as insulting as she was normally. It was peculiar, but Quinn decided it was best not to question it; having her friends all back on her side and on good terms with one another was not a situation she was about to take for granted. Finn had obviously been kind to her also, but she had not wanted to intrude too much, seeing as he had other things – or people - on his mind these days…

The blonde Ravenclaw sighed as she headed towards her next classroom. Only, when she pushed the door open to her Defence the Dark Arts classroom, she found it empty.

"Hello?" Quinn asked, scanning the surroundings as she took a few steps inside, confused.

Then the door shut behind her with a click, causing her to jump and spin around.

Jesse stepped out of the shadows as a hand flew over Quinn's heart in surprise.

"What are you doing here?" She asked sharply, realising afterwards that perhaps she had put just a little too much scorn into her words. "Where is everyone else?"

"They had to move to another classroom, due to the faulty enchantment that one of the students cast in the previous lesson here, making it rain from the ceiling." Jesse answered calmly.

"There's no rain falling in here." Quinn said flatly, narrowing her eyes.

Jesse smiled; "No, the kind student told his professor that they could all evacuate while he worked to fix his mistake."

Quinn folded her arms and stared blankly at him; "And the answer to my first question?"  
>Jesse smiled as he approached her very slowly, wary of her next move and fully prepared for her to bolt away from the situation. He raised his hands defensively.<p>

"I'm here because I wanted to talk to you."

Quinn threw her hands in the air and let out an exasperated sigh. "When are you going to give it up? I've given away the baby. She's gone, and I have no interest in having any involvement with you or her ever again."

Jesse nodded and stepped forward, drumming his fingers on his upper arms and pursing his lips; "You know it's funny because you speak these words, but I don't see any validation of them behind your eyes."

"Yes well, I think that you have already proven that your evaluation of my thoughts and feelings can fall short at times." She replied bluntly, trying to step around him. But he was too quick and blocked her off, making her turn back angrily.  
>"Why can't you just let me get on with my life? I thought you liked Rachel, anyway?"<p>

Jesse looked at the floor then, licking his lips before he returned her gaze. "I have… moved on. Rachel is happier elsewhere and I have had time to think over the holidays and my…affections have been placed elsewhere."

Quinn snorted. "Yeah sure they have, the fact that she's unavailable now has nothing to do with it at all then? Thought you'd move on to someone who you reckon you have more of a chance with?" She stepped forward so that their faces were inches apart. "Well here's a news flash for you St. James: I'm equally unavailable to you if not more so. I think it'd be best if you realised that nobody wants you anymore. Not me, not Rachel. Nobody."

Jesse remained cool as he returned her glare with a tiny smirk. "I hardly think you can rule out everyone, in fact I can think of a number of girls who would quite happily fall down at my feet for a proposal of dating me."

"Good. Go ask them then." She tried to barge past again but he placed his hands on her shoulders and looked up at her from underneath his eyelashes.

"I don't want any of them, I only want you."

"For what? The next five minutes? Until some other girl takes your fancy. Face it Jesse; you're fickle and that's why you never wanted to be exclusive with me; you didn't want to appear unavailable yourself, so you kept your options open in case someone else appealed to you. The only reason you wanted to be in an open relationship with Rachel was so that you could play games with me. Well, I'm done with that. I can quite happily find a guy who respects me and who loves me for who I am, not for a reserved period of time when they feel lonely and want someone to cling to while they realise that their lives are as empty as someone who's experienced a Dementor's Kiss."

This time she managed to walk around him, batting his hands away and heading straight for the door, but he still managed to catch her and pulled her back, causing her to fall on the Slytherin's waiting lips.

Jesse tried to put his hands to her face but before he got the chance she slapped him directly across his own.

He fell back, startled by the violent reaction, as if he could hardly believe that she could reject him so fiercely.

"And you leave me just as cold." She said with one last look of disgust before she pulled open the door, and strode away from the classroom.

* * *

><p>Quinn felt her blood boiling as she thought over his arrogant words and smug facial expression that she wished she could erase from her mind forever.<p>

Quinn tore down the corridor and soon found herself bursting from the large oak doors and out into the school grounds, trying to contain her rage as her heart pounded in her ears.

_I know I can't take one more step towards you_

_Cause all that's waiting is regret_

_And don't you know I'm not your ghost anymore?_

_You lost the love I loved the most_

_I learned to live, half-alive_

_And now you want me one more time_

She took a deep breath as she shook her head angrily, carrying on striding down towards the forest trees at a rocket's pace.

_And who do you think you are?_

_Runnin' 'round leaving scars_

_Collecting your jar of hearts_

_And tearing love apart_

_You're gonna catch a cold_

_From the ice inside your soul_

_So don't come back for me_

_Who do you think you are?_

_I hear you're asking all around_

_If I am anywhere to be found_

_I have grown too strong_

_To ever fall back in your arms_

She fought back tears as she found herself immersed in the trees. The lattice of the canopies stretched far above her and created a tessellated pattern of leaves on the ground. She slowed her pace with her fists clenched and jaw tight.

_I've learned to live, half-alive_

_Now you want me one more time_

_Who do you think you are?_

_Runnin' 'round leaving scars_

_Collecting your jar of hearts_

_And tearing love apart_

_You're gonna catch a cold_

_From the ice inside your soul_

_So don't come back for me_

_Who do you think you are?_

* * *

><p>Kurt and Rachel looked up from their seats in Hagrid's hut.<p>

"Did you hear something?" Kurt asked Rachel in a hushed voice, glancing towards the window as Hagrid busied himself in his kitchen – or the corner that best resembled one by the fire.

"Yeah, who is that?" Rachel asked.

"I have no idea, no one I recognise…" Kurt pondered. "Do you think that we should go check?"

He glanced up at Hagrid whose back was still turned.

Rachel stood up, "I'll go, one of us has to stay with Hagrid... Make sure he doesn't set the hut on fire again." She whispered the last part.

"Sure?" Kurt asked, his expression looking as though he would much rather leave than be in danger of preventing the fire hazard.

Rachel smiled, "Yeah, it's fine. Just… Don't eat whatever he gives you." She whispered.

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Honestly Rachel, I'm not stupid."

She grinned before apologizing to Hagrid and exiting the hut.

* * *

><p><em>Dear, it took so long<em>

_Just to feel alright_

_Remember how to put back_

_The light in my eyes_

_I wish I had missed_

_The first time that we kissed_

_'Cause you broke all your promises_

_And now you're back you don't get to get me back_

_Who do you think you are?_

_Runnin' 'round leaving scars_

_Collecting your jar of hearts_

_And tearing love apart_

Rachel entered the clearing and her eyebrows rose to her hairline as she spied the blonde Ravenclaw sitting on a rock as she continued to sing.

_You're gonna catch a cold_

_From the ice inside your soul_

_So don't come back for me_

_Don't come back at all_

_And who do you think you are?_

_Runnin' 'round leaving scars_

_Collecting your jar of hearts_

_And tearing love apart_

_You're gonna catch a cold_

_From the ice inside your soul_

_Don't come back for me_

_Don't come back at all_

_Who do you think you are?_

_Who do you think you are?_

_Who do you think you are?_

"Hey," Rachel said, as Quinn's last note faded into the air.

Quinn whipped her head round. "Jesus, must people keep intruding on me unannounced?"

She sighed, feeling bad for having snapped. "Sorry, I… didn't mean to…"

"Bad day?" Rachel guessed, walking forwards with her hands clasped in front of her.

She had never exactly had a proper conversation with Quinn, and had in fact spent the majority of the last year hating her and blaming her for the events that occurred between herself and Finn, which she now knew Quinn never deserved, and a considerable amount of guilt remained on that account.

"Something like that..." Quinn said, looking uncomfortable herself.

"Is it because of the-"

"It's not the baby." She answered automatically. Whenever she had looked gloomy lately that was what people had always assumed – as if they expected her to have some form of post-natal depression, but she was sure that her foul mood – at least at that moment - was to do with something quite different.

"…Jesse?" Rachel hesitated before speaking the name darkly.

Quinn coughed a laugh; "He's not the favourite of anyone is he? Well, that's some comfort.

Rachel smiled and decided to take a seat next to Quinn.

"I feel like I should apologise… Before, when I thought that-"

Quinn held up a hand. "Honestly, don't. I'd have felt just the same in your position. It was weird for me too… I didn't think so well of you either, but I guess we were all just pawns in his twisted game."

"Do you really think he's that evil?" Rachel asked, frowning as she wasn't completely convinced that the Slytherin – member of that house though he may be – was filled with total malice.

Quinn considered this; "I believe that he's ignorant and has his head too far up in the clouds, but no. Not evil. I think that imagining him as so makes me feel just that little bit better, though. Is that bad?"

Rachel shook her head. "No… I can relate."

Quinn smiled and looked down at her hands as there was a short silence; both girls unsure what to say to the other.

"So…you and Finn, huh?" Quinn asked, attempting small talk.

She tried not to, but Rachel couldn't help but smile at the mention of his name - something the Ravenclaw did not fail to pick up on.

"You're lucky. He's one of the good ones." Quinn remarked.

"I know… perhaps too good," Rachel pursed her lips. "Sometimes… I- I think that maybe I'm not quite good enough for him. I'm kind of conceited and overly ambitious… some would say to the extent of being a borderline sociopath…"

Quinn shrugged. "We all have our faults. He has his too, but if you can find a way to love someone in spite of those things then you're probably going to last way longer than those who are blinded. You guys were friends for so long, you'll probably be all right."  
>Rachel nodded and watched as the Ravenclaw girl picked at the small amount of dirt beneath her fingernails.<p>

"Quinn… You're all right aren't you? I mean I know you were close to Finn last year, and I know that you have Brittany and Santana, but sometimes you need more people around you. I mean I don't know, what you went through… it can't have been easy."

"Not quite." Quinn admitted.

"Would you… I mean, dinner will be in the Great Hall soon… and Kurt and I are at Hagrid's for the moment… Do you want to maybe, I don't know, come hang out with us?" Rachel asked, apprehensively.

Quinn looked up at Rachel for a moment, a little taken aback.

"You don't have to, if you don't want. I just thought… I mean Brittany sits with us a lot, and Santana did this morning. Not sure why… But yeah…"

"Yeah, okay." Quinn said.

Rachel smiled. "All right, shall we?"

The tiny brunette stood up from the rock and Quinn followed suit, ready to go with her to Hagrid's.

"Rachel?"

The Gryffindor girl turned around.

"Thanks."

"No problem."

"But you do realise that we're going to crush you Gryffindor's tonight?"

Rachel grinned, finally feeling the tension drop between them as she put her hands on her hips, "We'll just see about that one, won't we?"

* * *

><p>That evening Kurt and Blaine were headed down towards the Quidditch pitch, Kurt had accompanied Blaine early as he would be going to have a last minute pep-talk and perhaps a quick warm up before the match started that night.<p>

Kurt looped his arm around his boyfriend's as they walked.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," He shook his head, teeth chattering.

Blaine pulled him closer in an attempt to keep him warm; "Because you love me?"

Kurt narrowed his eyes; "You can't start using that as an excuse now you know; it doesn't mean that I can't hate you a little bit at the same time."

"Aren't you meant to be telling me words of support and encouragement?" Blaine asked with a chuckle.

"That's not how I roll; I do sarcasm and put-downs regarding fashion sense and Broadway knowledge."

"You're so very unhelpful," Blaine sighed.

Kurt laughed and rested his head in the crook of Blaine's neck, "You'll do great; I'm not even the least bit worried. And please, if you can do anything to make Wes shut up for a few hours, I will be your very own personal cheerleader."

"I don't know about a few hours… minutes maybe."

"Even that would be bliss," Kurt remarked.  
>Blaine smiled, "Now about that cheerleading proposal…"<p>

They carried on together down the path, discussing this idea and were half way towards the pitch when Kurt heard a rustle in the trees beside them. He pulled up short. The January night meant that it had become dark very early on in the day and so now only the lights from the castle and the faint glow of the stadium up ahead provided any kind of visibility. Out of his natural reflex response, Kurt's grip on Blaine's arm tightened as a cold shiver ran down his spine.

"What is it?" Blaine whispered anxiously in his ear, staring around them as well.

"I think I heard someone." Kurt hissed back, eyes wide in panic.

"Kurt it's all right, they're probably just another Quidditch player going down to warm up." Blaine tried to reassure him but then Kurt turned his head to look over his shoulder and Blaine could feel his body jump as he took in a short intake of breath.

Blaine turned around to find Karofsky standing a few feet away from them and, just like Kurt, he acted on impulse by pulling his wand from his pocket.

Karofsky held out his hands defensively. "Whoa - Chill out, I'm not going to hurt you."

"Then why are you sneaking up on us in the dead of night?" Blaine demanded quickly, though he lowered his wand but stayed close by Kurt's side.

Karofsky looked away for a second and then down at the ground, shuffling his feet from side to side; "I wanted to talk to you both."

Kurt and Blaine exchanged puzzled glances between them and Kurt's old bully, unsure about what results would be produced from this fresh encounter.

Karofsky took a step forward so that they could see his face a little better and Blaine whispered: "_Lumos_."

The three boys stood, measuring one another up for a moment as the tension built between them.

"I err… wanted to apologise." Karofsky said finally.

Kurt stared at him for a while but said nothing, inviting him to continue and Blaine took his lead in the silence.

"…I just, okay." Karofsky took a deep breath; apologies obviously weren't familiar territory for the Slytherin and he looked thoroughly out of his comfort zone. "Look, I know that I have done some bad things to you both in the past…"

Blaine snorted but Kurt just shook his head quietly and the older Gryffindor held his tongue.

"…Yeah okay, really bad things. Terrible. I wish I could take them back - I really do - and I felt that a while back but then I did worse things. I tried to meddle with you both and… Well, it wasn't cool. I don't… I don't want to do that stuff anymore. I know that it has taken me a long time to come to realise this… and I don't expect you to forgive me or anything… I just…needed to tell you. I'm just… I'm so freaking sorry, Kurt, for what I did to you and-" He looked at Blaine for a brief second. "Well, I'm sorry to you both."

There was a slight pause until they were certain he had said his piece. "You promise that you're going to leave us alone?" Kurt asked in a quiet voice.

Karofsky nodded.

"This isn't some kind of trick, or game, or something?" Blaine asked apprehensively.

Karofsky shook his head earnestly.

Kurt looked at Blaine who returned his gaze for a moment, trying to read the other boy's thoughts on this sudden turn of events.

Kurt turned his head back towards Karofsky.

"I forgive you, Dave." He said simply.

Blaine looked reluctant as his boyfriend and the burly Slytherin watched the Gryffindor Chaser. His lips were held tightly together as he seemed unwilling to accept this random stroke of good fortune.  
>For a moment, Kurt worried that Blaine would never allow himself to forgive the boy before them, but then his shoulders finally relaxed.<p>

"Me too." Blaine said quietly. "If you never do anything to hurt Kurt again then we'll put the ugliness behind us and carry on with our lives. Deal?"

"Deal," Karofsky answered, looking thoroughly relieved by this reaction; obviously he had expected one that was much worse.

Blaine held out his hand tentatively and Dave shook it.

He looked as though he wanted to disappear then, into the night but Kurt stopped him.

"What about you, Dave?"

He looked up in reply. "What do you mean?"

"Have you… Are you okay? With yourself I mean?" Kurt asked and Blaine looked at him quizzically.

Dave bit his lip. "I'm not sure. Getting there maybe. I'll have to see."

Kurt nodded. "I won't say anything, you know, your secret is safe with us if that's how you want it."

Dave looked at Blaine then, who nodded in assent.

"Thanks," Dave said. "…You don't… I mean do you judge me… for hiding?"

Kurt even smiled slightly. "No, I'm happy for you to be whoever you want to be at your own pace, so long as you don't take any aggression out on others because of it."

Karofsky nodded. "Yeah, I won't. I promise."

"I believe you." Kurt answered.

The Slytherin stood there for one more moment, a little awkwardly.

"Good luck in the game," He said to Blaine finally, before turning on his heel and heading back up towards the castle.

The two boys watched him go for a long while before Kurt broke the silence.

"That was-"

"Unexpected."

"Yeah."

Blaine shook his head. "Quidditch?"

"Yeah, suddenly sounds much more appealing," Kurt replied, taking Blaine's hand as they headed back towards the stadium.

* * *

><p>The Gryffindors stood in their stand having pushed to the front row in their haste to watch the upcoming match. Kurt, Rachel and Mercedes stood eagerly awaiting their friends to enter the pitch. Just across from them, Wes and David were already roaring their support and making rude gestures towards the other three, who rolled their eyes. Trent and Brittany could also be seen in the Hufflepuff stand, looking content to watch an impartial match. Trent was obviously better friends with his fellow warblers, but then again, seeing them being bad losers was always an entertaining experience for everyone involved, so he was torn.<p>

Quinn turned up at the Ravenclaw stand and made her way towards the two boys there, tapping Wes lightly on the shoulder. He made room for her and she looked across the stands at Rachel who beamed widely.

"I told you she was nice." Kurt gloated as he saw their interaction.

"Shut up."

Mercedes held a hand up to Kurt who high-fived her and they both flicked their hair in unison.

Rachel scowled.

At that moment however, a voice came across the intercom and began introducing the teams as they entered onto the pitch to roars from the crowd. The noise was almost deafening and Kurt was glad that he had brought his earmuffs this time, which reduced the sound slightly.

Each of the players zoomed out on their brooms in a haze of Red and Blue, so that Kurt had to squint to make out Blaine and Finn amongst them.

He needn't have bothered with the former, who decided to fly up and shoot directly past their stand in front of the three spectators, grinning at Kurt as he did so.

"Show off!" Kurt yelled as Blaine did a loop-de-loop in the air. "Focus on the damn game!"

Blaine just laughed and swooped back towards the rest of his team again.

"I thought you didn't care about Quidditch?" Rachel smirked.

"I don't." Kurt said, folding his arms.

The whistle was finally blown and the match commenced.

The first twenty minutes or so went by rather uneventfully, with several goals being scored either way, Gryffindor with a slight advantage as the score tolled up.

The snitch had barely been sighted, most likely due to the fact that a thick mist had begun to settle around Hogwart's grounds making vision difficult despite the well-lit arena.

They watched as Blaine decided to fly higher where the haze siphoned out, hoping that he would be able to oversee the game and make more informed tackles from the above position.

"Gryffindor have the Quaffle, passing to Emery, Diggron takes it, narrowly missing a tackle from Somerby and heading towards the left goal- She scores! 80- 50 to Gryffindor, now with a decent advantage."

Kurt could have sworn that he could hear David's boos from across the stadium and he looked across at the loud-voiced Ravenclaw who was grinning as he searched for Blaine in the sky, clearly the victim he had intended to direct his taunts towards.

But then David's heckles trailed off as he looked up at the Gryffindor Chaser, a strange expression crossing his features.

Before Kurt looked up he could already feel the sinking sensation in his stomach as his night-time surroundings seemed to darken further. He could hear his uneven breaths as his eyes followed David's line of sight.

Blaine was in the same position he has last seen him. This was unusual; normally when on the pitch the Gryffindor could barely keep still for two seconds, let alone two solid minutes. But Kurt could see him now. Frozen. Staring ahead at something in the distance that Kurt could not even hope to make out in this mist.

But Blaine had seen something.

Something that had rendered him immobile.

Only his profile was visible but as Kurt felt a chill run down the length of his spine, numbing him right down through his fingertips, he recognised the hollow expression on Blaine's face. It was the exact mirror of how he had looked the first time Kurt had come across him on the train. Staring blankly into some unknown abyss, but there was an additional streak of shock and horror engraved across his skin.

And that was when he fell off of his broom.

* * *

><p>I feel like I'm being a very bad author since I haven't updated in ages and now I've gone and left it on a major cliffhanger! I'm hoping that you will forgive me, because you will want to wait and see what happens next.<br>I kind of just want to bring Sebastian in so that Kurt may punch him in the face, but I'm not sure how to do it... maybe I'll just pray for it to happen on the show, ey?

Please, Ryan, let it be. Listen to Chris, he knows best.

TTFN dudes.


	38. Chapter 37: Nathan

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Nathan

(Songs: I Dare You To Move)

* * *

><p>"<em>Blaine<em>!"

Kurt's yell was barely audible amidst the chaos that ensued directly after the Chaser's fall. Everyone began screaming and pushing towards the barrier to see what was going on, but Kurt's legs led him in an entirely different direction.

Before his mind registered with his body he had bolted towards the stairs, racing as fast as he could down them so that he could reach the bottom of the stands, to the surface of the Quidditch pitch.

The teachers had acted fast; they were already standing by the entrance, arms held out and wands at the ready to prevent fervent students from flooding onto the pitch.

Somehow Kurt had managed to break through the masses and he threw himself towards the professors.

"No students are permitted to enter the field, the situation is being dealt with," Professor McGonagall called to the Gryffindor's in their stand, just before she noticed Kurt rushing towards her. Her lips pursed tightly as he approached, eyes wide with fear and face flushed of colour.

"Please, professor," He begged, his voice cracking on the second word.

She took a short intake of breath, before nodding and permitting him entrance. Later, he would remember to thank her, but right now any other thought process was rendered impossible.

Kurt sprinted towards the group that had already gathered around the spot where Blaine had fallen. The circle of red formed a tight knit group and a flurry of purple could be seen amongst them; Dumbledore had been quick to cast the enchantment that had broken Blaine's fatal plummet to the ground.

Finn looked up just as Kurt came within a few feet of them; looking wild with fear, face white. His brother stepped aside, and put a hand on his shoulder as he was finally able to see the boy that lay on the ground.

His eyes were still closed, but his body did not appear damaged, yet still he looked cold. His skin appeared to have taken on a greyish hue and his lips were dry and hung open.

Kurt's hand flew to his mouth and tears stung his eyes as Dumbledore crouched beside the Gryffindor boy.

"Is he dead?" Kurt asked in a strangled voice.

"No," Dumbledore replied calmly but with a grave tone. "Merely unconscious."

Kurt went to his knees on the other side of Blaine and the headmaster did not protest as he waved his wand slowly down the length of the Chaser's body.

Blaine's eyes fluttered open.

He tried to sit up almost instantly, but Dumbledore carefully pushed him back down.

His eyes seemed to spin in their sockets; brain whirring while panic was scorched across his features.

"Blaine? What happened? Blaine, are you okay?" Kurt asked desperately, attempting to settle him, putting his hand over his.

He failed to calm him as Blaine sat bolt upright again, eyes flying open. He looked manic - He looked deranged.

Before anyone knew what he was doing he was suddenly on his feet, Kurt's hand falling away from his own. The rest of his team, as well as Kurt and Dumbledore, could not have fathomed his ability to get up so quickly after such an event and they were barely able to catch the word that escaped his lips:

"Nathan."

Then he began to run.

Kurt looked up into Dumbledore's eyes, behind his half moon spectacles for a fraction of a second, pure confusion passing between them before he looked up at Finn and the others who had now joined them.

"Nathan…?" Kurt whispered, staring after the stumbling figure that had somehow made it to the edge of the stadium in what had seemed like a fraction of a second.

Then everyone began to run after the frenzied boy, with no idea what had happened or why Blaine could have said the last words he had. Nathan? Nathan was dead. What was going on?

There was no time to answer these questions between themselves, however, the only priority was finding Blaine and returning him to the castle. He could be seriously injured even after Dumbledore's enchantment, all though his ability to move his limbs at lightning speed at that moment was remarkable.

Kurt was one of the first to exit the arena and he spotted Blaine approaching the water's edge of the lake. The countertenor pointed and they all followed in pursuit.

Wes, David and Trent had caught up with them now.

"What the hell is going on?" Wes shouted as he caught up with Kurt.

"Nathan. He just said Nathan and ran." Kurt gasped in an effort to speak while he rushed towards the straying Gryffindor.

"What? Why?" Trent asked.

But Kurt could not provide any answer.

But soon enough he did not need to supply one.

Blaine had thrown himself suddenly into the shallows of the lapping water, splashing wildly as he clambered to reach something that they began to make out floating on the surface.

It was a body.

Kurt exchanged shocked glances with the others before darting forwards.

The professors made it there before him, however, and pushed everyone away.

"Stay back, stay back!" They shouted as Dumbledore flew between their barricades and towards the scene.

"Keep back, Kurt, 's no good you comin' near." Hagrid warned, putting a massive hand out to prevent him.

"Hagrid – Please!" He insisted.

Hagrid shook his head. "Dumbledore will sort it out; you'll only make thin's worse for yerself 'n Blaine."

Kurt tried to formulate an argument, but only gasps and choked words escaped his mouth.

Rachel's hand found his and squeezed it tightly. "It's okay. Hagrid's right. Blaine'll be fine with Dumbledore."

He still wasn't convinced, but Kurt stopped fighting, holding Rachel's hand tightly, frantically scanning, trying to crane his neck to see beyond the half-giant's form.

McGonagall reappeared and went towards Professor Sprout.

Kurt strained his ears.

"Is it - " Sprout asked in amazement. " - Is it the brother?"

McGonagall hesitated, looking up and seeing Kurt watching them. She took a deep breath and nodded once.

Kurt's free hand flew to his heart as he looked back towards the sea's edge.

"All students must return to the castle – immediately!" McGonagall yelled over the crowd. "All Head's of Year must lead their houses back to their dormitories! Prefects assemble! Gryffindor's - follow me!"

She crossed over to Hagrid and whispered. "Take Mr Hummel to the boy, Hagrid."

She nodded once at Kurt, whose mouth had fallen open, before disappearing to lead the Gryffindor's back to Hogwart's castle.

Two thanks would be in order.

"Kurt do you-?" Rachel began.  
>"No," He said hoarsely. "Stay."<p>

She nodded, and Hagrid stepped aside so that they could both go towards the scene.

Madame Pomfrey and Dumbledore were tending to an obscured figure a little way away, while Blaine stood over them, watching.

"What-what are you doing?" The standing brother asked wretchedly as Madame Pomfrey conjured a stretcher.

"We're taking him to the hospital wing. He's swallowed a lot of water and appears to be unconscious. Possible concussion." She told him gently as Kurt came to his side.

"Will he- is he?" Blaine could not even finish the sentence.

"We can examine him better from the wing; we don't know if any spells have been cast upon him."

They all stared now, at the figure that was being lifted onto the stretcher.

His hair and clothes were soaked and clung to him like cellophane, sticking to his skin, clinging on like a thousand leeches, trying to wear him to the bone. His skin was deathly white and his lips were blue. His eyes were obviously closed and it was hard to distinguish his features, other than the scar that lay between his eyebrows, the one that Blaine had described. Even so, it was plain to see the similarities between the boy that lay on the stretcher and the one that stood beside him now, even with these embellishments. It was unmistakeable; this had to be Blaine's older brother.

"But- he's… alive?" Blaine said slowly, hardly daring himself to believe it.

Dumbledore looked up at him for a moment. "Yes. There is a heartbeat."

Blaine's hands flew to his hair and fell down across his face as though he hardly knew what to do. Suddenly he was in a crouched position on the floor, one hand on the ground to stabilise himself. His breaths came out ragged and he seemed to seize up, scrunching up his features and clenching his jaw together. He looked as though he was fighting between an impulse to laugh and cry at the same time.

Kurt immediately went to him and Blaine clung to the younger Gryffindor boy for support that was leant gladly. Together they managed to get the Chaser back to his shaking feet.

Dumbledore controlled the enchantment over the stretcher.

"We best get you to the hospital wing as well, Anderson, after what happened on the pitch. " Madame Pomfrey said sternly.

"Can-can I stay with him?" He asked desperately.

"Yes," She replied.

Blaine looked across at Kurt, who he had not yet been able to acknowledge due to his fixation upon his brother.

He stared at him in utter disbelief and incredulity.

"He's-"

"I know." Kurt whispered softly.

"I have to-"

"Go." Kurt nodded, then he changed his tone to an encouraged order: "Go!"

Blaine's lips twitched into what could have only been an attempt at a smile before he turned to run after his brother's body.

"Hagrid, escort these two to my office, I will be there shortly," Dumbledore called back.

"Right che' are, headmaster." Hagrid called back.

Rachel looked up at Kurt in astonishment. "Wow."

"He'll be okay, won't he?"

She nodded. "With Pomfrey and Dumbledore… I don't see how he couldn't be."

"And Blaine?" Kurt asked, a little less certain.

"Once he gets over the shock… I can't even imagine how he'd feel."

Kurt watched as Nathan's stretcher floated towards the castle in the ever-looming darkness.

_Welcome to the planet_

_Welcome to existence_

_Everyone's here_

_Everyone's here_

_Everybody's watching you now_

_Everybody waits for you now_

_What happens next?_

_What happens next?_

Blaine unthinkingly rejected the offer of a stretcher for himself as he ran to catch up with the one ahead. He didn't understand how he could still move; every part of him still ached and screamed from the fall on the Quidditch pitch, but somehow he had become numb to it all, his thoughts too far beyond anything to do with his own physicality to even notice.

He came up alongside the stretcher, finally able to be in close-contact to the body since he had dragged it from the lake.

It was him. He was there. Right in front of him.

Was it another trick? Like the mirror? Was he seeing some kind of illusion?

He came up closer he jogged alongside it, the halls of Hogwarts now empty after all of its students had been escorted to their dormitories, and he held his brother's hand.

It was there. Deathly cold and damp from the water, fingernails bedded in dirt and two of them cracked, but it was real. As real as his own. No shiny surface stood between their flesh and Blaine couldn't help but burst into a smile, feeling delirious from the realisation.

_I dare you to move_

_I dare you to move_

_I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor_

_I dare you to move_

_I dare you to move_

_Like today never happened_

_Today never happened before_

They rushed into the hospital wing, and Blaine was forced to stand aside, helpless as Madame Pomfrey closed the curtains around Nathan's bed. Other people spoke to him, he felt hands comfortingly touch his shoulders, checking his pulse, taking his temperature, making him drink potions. He hardly noticed them. Barely looked at them, just remained staring at the bed across from him, straining his eyes as if he hoped to see through the curtain that stood between them.

When it was finally drawn again, Nathan had been changed into a white gown and lay peacefully on the bed, face upturned towards the ceiling. Eyes still closed. Blaine rushed over to him as soon as he was permitted.

_Welcome to the fallout_

_Welcome to resistance_

_The tension is here_

_The tension is here_

_Between who you are and who you could be_

_Between how it is and how it should be_

_I dare you to move_

_I dare you to move_

_I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor_

_I dare you to move_

_I dare you to move_

_Like today never happened_

_Today never happened_

_Maybe redemption has stories to tell_

_Maybe forgiveness is right where you fell_

_Where can you run to escape from yourself?_

_Where you gonna go?_

_Where you gonna go?_

_Salvation is here_

Blaine took Nathan's now considerably warmer hand in both of his and bent his forehead to rest on it as he waited for what must have been hours. Stray tears squeezed themselves from his eyes, but he hardly noticed them, allowing them to dry on his cheeks as he waited.

"Please Nathan." He whispered. "Just wake up."

He looked into the motionless face of his brother, still finding it almost impossible to trust himself to believe it to be true.

"Wake up. Come on."

He pursed his lips together tightly and could now see that his hands were shaking as they held his.

"Please. I need you to come back to me."

_I dare you to move_

_I dare you to move_

_I dare you to lift yourself, to lift yourself up off the floor_

"Please, Nathan. Just wake up. Just move. Just open your eyes."

_I dare you to move_

_I dare you to move_

_Like today never happened_

"Just open your eyes, Nate, please."

_Today never happened_

_Today never happened_

_Today never happened before_

Blaine watched as Nathan's eyelids fluttered open, his head rolling over to look at his younger brother who was frozen as he watched the movement.

"Hey man…." He mumbled and Blaine's heart caught in his throat. "…'s been a while."

* * *

><p>Kurt sat on the edge of his seat in Dumbledore's office, resisting the temptation to gnaw his fingernails to stubs.<p>

Rachel placed a comforting hand on his shoulder just as the door behind them swung open and the headmaster entered.

Kurt was to his feet at once.

"Is he all right? Is Blaine okay? Nathan? Is he really alive?" He blurted before he could stop himself.

Dumbledore whirled his wand and two cups and saucers appeared before them on his desk, a pot hovering above the crockery as it begun to pour out steaming liquid.

"Please, sit down and drink the tea; I will explain everything I assure you."

Kurt looked reluctant but he followed these instructions as Dumbledore strode behind his desk, sitting in his chair, leaning his head forwards to rest on his delicately dented fingers.

"Drink," He encouraged, since neither Gryffindor had moved. They did so.

"There; it'll make you feel a lot better." He was right - as usual.

Kurt was about to ask another question when Dumbledore raised his hand and smiled. "Mr Anderson is perfectly all right, his injuries from the fall seem to be minor, and all of Madame Pomfrey's examinations deemed him fit as a fiddle. Remarkable, really, but fortunately my spell did break his fall considerably, so no severe damage was done. I believe he broke one of his fingers, but I'd be willing to bet that the dear boy failed to notice at all. In any case, it has been fixed and as far as I could tell, he is right as rain."

Kurt sat back, allowing the tension in his shoulders to decrease at the news, but still not appearing at all relaxed.

"As for the second Mr Anderson… Well, that's a whole other conundrum entirely." Dumbledore said, shaking his head and twirling his wand so that his own cup of tea could be poured.

"How do you mean?" Rachel asked urgently. "He's all right, isn't he?"

"He woke up about seventeen minutes ago. His breathing seems regular and heartbeat normal. He no longer has the water in his lungs and seems to have sustained few other injuries. He is, however, rather feverish – most likely from the inordinate amount of time spent in the lake, which has caused his temperature to drop alarmingly. Still, it shouldn't be anything that we cannot handle. Otherwise, he appears to be completely fine. Health wise, anyway."

Kurt processed this for a moment, staring at the headmaster in disbelief. "And Blaine… He knows that Nathan is awake?"

"Yes, I believe that he was by his bedside the entire time and saw him when he was brought back into the land of the living." Dumbledore reported. "Other than that, I cannot say what his feelings are on the matter, as I am going to assume that is the intent behind your question, nor would I pretend to know if I had spoken with him. It is a great shock to everyone, but I believe that Mr Anderson will find it extremely difficult to wrap his mind around, given the grief his brother's disappearance has brought him."

Kurt pursed his lips, knowing exactly the sort of grief that Dumbledore was talking about. He couldn't even fathom what Blaine must be thinking at this moment. It was impossible. He probably wouldn't be able to get an accurate reading on his emotions himself.

Kurt leant forward and put his head in his hands as Rachel patted him anxiously on the back.

"Professor, would it be all right if we could go and see Blaine?" She asked, concerned.

Dumbledore hesitated. "I am not sure whether or not that would be wise at the moment… Mr and Mrs Anderson shall be arriving shortly. They were notified as soon as Nathan's body was found."

Kurt's head snapped up at the mention of Blaine's parents. "They're coming here?"

He knew it was probably irrational, but the thought of it filled him with dread, especially the prospect of coming into contact with Blaine's father.

Dumbledore nodded; "I think that it would be best to give the family some privacy…" He looked at Kurt, "I know that this must be difficult for you, and I wish that I could permit you to visit, but I think that the fewer people Mr Anderson has to deal with at the moment, the better. Though he probably is already, I would hate for him to become too overwhelmed by the situation."

Kurt breathed heavily. "I understand, Professor, I just-"

"You just want to make sure that he is okay, and I assure you that he will be, and that you may visit him very soon. After Mr and Mrs Anderson have gone to the hospital wing I shall bring them here to talk to – I hardly think that Mr Anderson will need to attend that meeting and so I will have him accompanied back to your dormitory."

Kurt nodded slowly and looked at Rachel.

"It's probably for the best, Kurt." She said softly.

He sighed, knowing that it probably was and yet still yearning to go and find Blaine that very minute and check for himself that he was all right. Having to deal with Nathan and now his parents… He wasn't all together sure whether those were things he would be able to handle all in one evening.

"Miss Berry, would you mind returning to your dormitory while I have a word with Mr Hummel? I will send for McGonagall to accompany you to Gryffindor Common room." Dumbledore said in a quiet voice.

Rachel looked a little taken aback, but she consented as Dumbledore conjured a Patronus from his wand, which flew out of the open window.

"Will you be all right, Kurt?" She asked, standing up.

He nodded deafly and she gave his hand one last squeeze before departing.

Kurt looked up at Dumbledore once she had gone and he got up from his seat, walking around the desk and towards one of the countless objects that laid around his room, most of which Kurt had never seen before in his life and hadn't even the tiniest hope of hazarding a guess at any of their functions or purposes.

He clicked together two prongs that stuck out from a black spiral which was held in a glass bowl and the sound reverberated pleasantly around the room, somehow making him feel slightly less stressed.

He clicked it again and a strange noise protruded from the tip, it was like a strange sort of music, a warped melody, which swam around the office, getting louder and quieter as it reached different points. Kurt had never heard sound like that. He hadn't known such fluctuation was possible. It was bizarre.

"Music is a perplexing thing, is it not?" Dumbledore mused as he stared at the odd instrument. "It can conjure up so many different feelings and thoughts, each one different to the next, and each time a new person listens a wholly new experience is created for that individual. Remarkable really, the sorts of emotions it may bring out after long submission in the back of one's subconscious. To the extent that it may be therapeutic to create, remake or simply listen to."

Kurt remained silent as Dumbledore clasped his hands behind his back and went to stand around the side of his desk again, perching on the corner and smiling down at the Gryffindor before him.

"I don't think it would be too bold for me to say that I believe you can appreciate the unique qualities it possesses?"

Kurt nodded, still not saying a word.

"No… Mr Anderson too, I would gather, and several of your other friends. Including Miss Berry who has just left us. I am glad that such enjoyments have been found amongst you. It is a brilliant way to bring people together, just as it is beneficial for an individual's privacy and growth."

Kurt wasn't entirely sure why Dumbledore was speaking about this, especially now, when the topic of singing seemed such a far away concern compared to the situation and thoughts roaring around his head.

"You know there are several magical properties that contribute towards music. It is more powerful than mere muggles often imagine. Take, for instance, the Siren's song; it has the ability to ensnare even the most strong-willed men and reduce them to the most dim-witted sheep. Unless, of course, a hero should be in the possession of copious amounts of earwax." The headmaster smiled in amusement before continuing; "Or the Merpeople, whose beautiful voices can only be heard beneath the icy depths of water where their true hearts and homes lie, whereas otherwise they are left unappreciated and dispelled… Even the call of a werewolf can have contrasting meanings, with different notes howled whenever their mood or appetite changes." He smiled. "And it doesn't just stop at beasts and mythical beings; wizards and witches have, through history, found ways of persuading others with their voices, or casting spells without need of a wand, or conjuring those they thought they'd lose, even unlocking seals that would have been regarded as closed tight for all eternity and without reasons to think otherwise. It is… truly remarkable." He said again, staring out of the window now, lost in thought.

"…Professor?" Kurt said softly.

"Mmm?"

"Why… I'm sorry, err, is this, relevant to anything?" Kurt asked cautiously.

"Everything is relevant, Mr Hummel, or at least I would like to think so. Every piece of knowledge is worth learning, for we never know what circumstances we may be thrown into, and if we do not prepare widely for various avenues of the unknown beforehand, then we may as well walk around blindfolded." Dumbledore said, waving his wand to pour out another cup of tea, even though Kurt had hardly touched his last.

He held the cup tentatively. "I guess so…"

Dumbledore chuckled. "I am merely suggesting that perhaps, in situations such as this, where no clear pathway can be seen, where no one course of action can be perceived to be the right one, it is best to rely on what knowledge you posses, to utilise it to the best of your ability, and that way you will have a higher chance of success than if you stumble into such complications without your best arsenal."

"So…music is a weapon?" Kurt asked, confused.

Dumbledore smiled again and shook his head. "No, no, perhaps that was a bad choice of words on my part – a rare occasion, granted – not a weapon so much as… a tool, that you have the fortune to have at hand, in case something needs fixing or correcting."

"So…when am I supposed to use it?" Kurt asked, still a little perplexed, but starting to understand some of what the headmaster was getting at.

Dumbledore's eyes looked to the ceiling as he mused. "Whenever you see fit, I suppose; human instinct is another gift granted to us, and it should always be trusted. When the time comes, you'll know."

Well, that was an extremely evasive answer, Kurt thought. He felt lost again. Was Dumbledore implying that he should sing to Blaine in order to make him feel better about the events of the evening? He was not sure that a song could straighten out the situation that smoothly, no matter how much it had helped them before. Blaine would need more than an encouraging tune to sort through the muddle that his mind must be right now. Dumbledore must know that, he had insinuated so himself earlier, when he had spoke of Blaine's coming to terms with these dramatic developments being no easy feat or quick process. So then why was he speaking of all this? Was there another piece of the puzzle that Kurt had currently lost behind a sofa cushion or between the floorboards?

At that moment a silvery cat bounded in through the open window.

"Ah, Professor McGonagall says that Mr Anderson's parents have now arrived on school grounds. I am very sorry to have to do this, but I must go and meet with them. Minerva is waiting outside; I shall go with you to meet her and she will escort you back to Gryffindor common room." He hesitated, reading Kurt's still worried expression. "Mr Anderson will arrive there shortly, I assure you."

Kurt nodded as Dumbledore got to his feet once more, heading towards the exit.

As Kurt followed him outside another thought struck him: Why had the headmaster asked Rachel to leave so that he could tell Kurt those things? What part of it was meant to be tailored for his ears only?

* * *

><p>Heyyyyyy<p>

Do you hate me?

I wouldn't blame you if you did - I have been positively dire in updating this story.

No seriously, I am ashamed of myself! I would lock myself away as punishment but that probably wouldn't help matters... unless I'm locked away with the computer...

I have been at uni and have had sooo much work, plus been doing fundraising and have hardly had a free moment.

I don't mean to make excuses but that's all I got!

Anyway, holidays now so I am free and will be better - promise!

Though I do still have to revise for exams :S

Hey, I need a good grade to study in the US for a year okay!  
>By the way, any suggestions for where I should go study are welcome :P<p>

Anyway new Glee soon! Blaine's got a brother... how appropriate! He hasn't come in with as dramatic circumstances as my version has though! Or has he? Hmmmmm all will be revealed!

Anyway, hope you like the update!

STARKID ARE DOING BATMAN

Fin.

(Not Glee Finn, that's with two n's - duh! It's french... I think... is it? Pretty sure. I dunno, I failed French...)


	39. Chapter 38: Let Me Think

Chapter Thirty-Eight:

**No songs - too much drama!**

* * *

><p>Kurt sat on the edge of one of the chairs in the common room. He had been sitting there for some time now, all though the exact amount he was not aware of. It felt like hours, but he was sure that it couldn't have been that long. He had gone up to check on Finn in their room, but he had already gone to sleep, leaving a note laid on Kurt's bed to say that Rachel had filled them all in and they just hoped that he and Blaine were okay. Kurt was thankful that he wouldn't have to provide the explanations, and furthermore that Blaine would not be burdened of it. He was sure that having to relate the story to them all would only add to the confusion he must be feeling.<p>

Kurt couldn't sit still any longer; he got to his feet, chewing on his thumbnail as he paced the length of the common room.

Blaine's parents were here, in the castle, at this very moment. Either in the hospital wing or talking to him, or to Dumbledore. Somewhere. He tried to conjure up a picture of Blaine's father, but the harder he tried the more impossible it seemed. He supposed he must look similar to Blaine and his brother, but otherwise his imagination was failing him, or simply did not want to provide the image.

Kurt felt as though he already hated him, and it was strange to possess such resentment for a man he had never even met, but just knowing the effect he had had on his son's life was enough. Blaine didn't talk about it much, but it was clear from the few times he had been mentioned him that their relationship was strained at best. If there was one think Kurt did know it was that Mr Anderson's presence would not be helping matters.

Just then Kurt could hear voices from outside and he pulled up short, trying to listen as best he could.

"…I will have leave you here, will you be all right?" The unmistakable Scottish accent of Minerva McGonagall could be heard beyond the portrait.

There was a low mutter, too quiet for Kurt to accurately distinguish the words that answered her.

"Your parents told me to tell you that they shall be meeting you tomorrow at noon. You have been excused from your lessons, so you may accompany them. I believe they will meet you in my office. They will be put up in a room next to the hospital wing, should you need them urgently beforehand." She reported.

Kurt could make out a soft thank you in reply and his heart leapt at hearing the voice.

"Are you sure you're all right, Anderson?"

"Yes, Professor." He could hear him now as he took a step closer to the entrance.

"Very well. Goodnight."

Kurt held his breath as the Fat Lady's portrait swung open and permitted the boy behind it entrance.

Blaine looked up and saw Kurt immediately and his eyes seemed to widen slightly in surprise. It was a sort of dazed surprise, as though he had been so persistently shell-shocked recently that he was still recovering from the previous blows.  
>He looked awful, in truth, his hair unkempt, skin white, lips dry and cracked while his eyes had a stranger appearance, as though they had been sunk down to the depths of his sockets. His hands shook slightly as he raised one of them to stroke the back of his neck as he swallowed, looking as though he was struggling to find words to speak to the Gryffindor boy before him. Nothing that his mind could formulate seemed to sum it up well enough.<p>

Kurt exhaled deeply, simply stepping forward to pull Blaine into a hug.

It was all the exhausted vocalist could do not to just let his limbs give way and collapse onto him there and then as he clung to his body.

Kurt guided him over to the closest sofa and set him down, pointing his wand at the fire, which flared up from the simmers that had illuminated it previously.

Blaine sat forwards, head in his hands. He did not cry, he did not speak - he didn't really do anything. This reaction worried Kurt more than a violent one. His boyfriend couldn't even tell if he was still breathing and so put a hand on his back just to check.

He was and so Kurt heaved a sigh of relief.

"You don't have to say anything," He whispered very carefully.

Blaine didn't verbally reply, merely lifted his head up slightly so that he could turn and rest it against Kurt's shoulder as he wrapped his arms around him.

"I don't even…" Blaine trailed off, not really knowing how to finish that sentence.

"It's okay," Kurt assured him.

"I want to tell you, I just-"

"You don't have to. Honestly, I'm just glad that you're all right… for the most part." He added.

"Much better now," He commented, breathing deeply as he closed his eyes.

Kurt chuckled lightly as he rested against him.

"What's so funny?" Blaine asked, sounding suddenly drowsy.

"Well, I know Quidditch is renowned for being a fairly dramatic sport, but I think that you and I do take it to a rather extreme new level."

Blaine laughed softly, and a slight haze seemed to drift over him, and he could tell that the tired boy was beginning to drift off.

"Kurt?" He murmured, barely audible.

"Yes, Blaine?"

He took a couple deep breaths before asking in an almost unintelligible mutter; "Will you come with me tomorrow?"

Kurt hesitated, hoping that didn't mean what he thought it meant. "Come with you… to meet your brother… and your parents?"

"Yeah," Blaine said, half-asleep by now.

Kurt sat in silence for a moment, looking down at the top of Blaine's head, which still rested on him.

"Are…Are you sure you want me there?" He asked cautiously, uncertain over whether or not his sleep-deprived state was a good judge at this moment.

"I…don't think I can do it if you're not there." Blaine slurred. "Dumbledore spoke to them very soon… Hardly saw them… No actual conversation… I don't want… Too weird."

He was babbling and Kurt stroked his hair absent-mindedly. He sighed inwardly. "It's okay. Yes. I'll go with you to see them."

"Thanks, Kurt."

"Any time." Kurt said softly, feeling a cold stone drop inside his stomach as the thought of tomorrow clouded over him.

* * *

><p>Mercedes nudged Kurt gently in the middle of Astronomy that morning. It was still depressingly dark outside due to the winter morning, giving them all the feeling that they should most definitely still be residing in their beds.<p>

Kurt, however, had other things on his mind than his outrage at schooling hours. He had not wanted to leave and go to lessons this morning, but Blaine had insisted, saying that he'd be fine and that he would probably just go back to sleep anyway, so Kurt wouldn't exactly miss anything by not staying in Gryffindor tower. Of course, Kurt knew this was a lie, and that Blaine would do no such thing, most likely he was wide awake at this very moment, worrying over meeting his parents.

He had similar fears himself. Though Blaine had assured him (once he was in a more conscious state) that they probably would be too preoccupied by other things to take too much notice of him, which he said was probably for the best on his father's part. Kurt still fretted, not least because Blaine had tried to act calm that morning, and had failed miserably in doing so. He had still looked pale and seemed to have adopted an inability to sit still without twisting his fingers or drumming his feet or rubbing his upper-arms nervously as he sat, or stood, or paced, or leant against the wall. It had actually given the countertenor a slight headache to watch him. He was not sure what part was causing such behaviour; he had assumed his parent's visit would be the reason, then again, seeing a conscious Nathan for the first time after the initial shock probably wouldn't be the easiest experience for him either.

"Kurt?" Mercedes wrenched him back into the present with a hiss.

Kurt looked up and saw Professor Sinistra leaning over him.

"Is everything all right, Hummel?"

The whole class turned their heads to stare at him.

They all knew. The professor, the students. Every person in Hogwarts, even the ghosts and the house elves knew his connection to Blaine and by now most had probably got wind of the news that his long-lost brother had returned to Hogwarts. He couldn't even bring himself to imagine the gossip that had been flying about Nathan's reappearance since the evening before.

"Fine." He said abruptly. "I'm fine."

Sinistra gave him a pitiful look – one that he did not take so fondly – and moved away.

Kurt dropped his head into his hands once she had turned her back and the other students had reluctantly removed their eyes from his face.

Mercedes patted him on the shoulder tentatively.

"Are you sure you want to be here, Kurt?" She whispered.

He looked up at the clock, which told him that he only had three and a half hours before noon.

"Yeah. Here's good." He replied decidedly.

* * *

><p>They filed out of Transfigurations a little while later as Kurt's sinking heart told him he only had two hours left. Mercedes pulled up short beside him and Kurt and Quinn who were walking with her saw the two boys approaching them.<p>

David and Trent smiled gravely as they came forwards.

"Hey, Kurt, how are you?" David asked as soon as they were in speaking-distance.

"Fine." He'd been using that answer a lot lately and David nodded as if he understood the truer meaning behind it.

"I wanted to talk to you briefly," Trent said this time.

"And I thought that we could go to the library together. You have a free, yes?" David said, directing his attention towards Mercedes.

Her eyes opened widely for a second before grabbing Quinn by the arm. "Actually, me and Quinn have a project that we have to work on together, so she better come too."

Quinn looked a little started but just smiled and said; "Oh yeah, right, we do need to get to work on that."  
>"Erm… okay…" David said, sounding a little suspicious as he looked between the two girls. "Better get going then…"<p>

He seemed a little crest fallen as they walked away together, but Kurt looked up at Trent now, realising that his expression was darker than usual, and he forgot about David's issues.

"Fancy a walk in the grounds?" Trent asked.

Kurt looked out of the window at the still snowy paths and trees. He pulled his ear-muffed hat over his head and pulled his scarf up tightly around his neck. "Yup."

* * *

><p>The two boys walked out of the large oak doors together into the chilly morning air.<p>

"So… Wes isn't with you?" Kurt asked slowly, trying to ease into the conversation.

"No, Wes is currently digging gunge out of the bottom of seven cauldrons that he managed to pulverise during Potions this morning. He was going to talk to you with me, but apparently his twisted nature got in the way of those priorities." Trent shrugged.

"Nice to know some things never change around here." Kurt said sighing. "So, what is it that you needed to talk to me about? If it's about being careful around Blaine right now, believe me, I get it. And-"

"We're not so much worried about Blaine." Trent said quickly, then looking at the Gryffindor's reproachful expression he back tracked. "I mean, yes, of course, we're all terribly concerned about him. What I mean to say is that in regards to you, well, I'm sure you know better than some of us the best way to deal with Blaine - if there _is_ a right or wrong way to go about it at the moment. No, we're more concerned about Papa Anderson when it comes to you, Kurt."

Kurt swallowed. "Yeah, you and me both. I'm kind of a bit terrified to meet him."

"Yeah, well, perhaps you should be."

Kurt looked at him as though he'd just told him he was about to plunge his head in a toilet bowl.

"Sorry, that came off a little harsh didn't it? I've never been good with tact. Erm, what I mean to say is, it's probably for the best, that you're scared. At least, that you're prepared for the worst. Because knowing Blaine's Dad… you're about to meet it."

Kurt pulled up short and looked across to Trent who stood, biting his lip as the snow began to fall again in the backdrop behind his head.

"Do I want to know?" He asked.

Trent pursed his lips; "I don't know Kurt, I mean I think a lot of what Blaine's told you makes him seem pretty tame. I mean, I doubt he'll do anything that bad – he's not evil or anything. He's just… Well, he won't take your relationship with Blaine well, I know that much."

Kurt's brow furrowed. "I kind of know most of this already…"

Trent sat down on one of the benches in the courtyard, which they were now at the centre of. He drummed his fingers on his knee and looked up at Kurt. "I know you do. I'm sure you're fully aware of his stance on all this. I know Blaine must have warned you before. I just… we just wanted to look out for you. Just, when you're there with them… try not to say too much, try to avoid talking to his father as much as possible – unless he speaks to you directly, but then just keep your answers simple. Don't act too affectionate towards Blaine in his presence. Just play it cool. Just act like a regular supportive friend I guess."

Kurt scoffed and folded his arms. "I can't believe this…"

"I know it's difficult, but it's just better for everyone. I know you're tired of it all and the last thing you want to do is pretend you're someone you're not and we're not asking you to do that… just to, hold it in a little, maybe?"

Kurt nodded. Somehow he felt that his pretending to be casual around Blaine would be about as convincing as Rachel acting as though she wasn't annoying.

"His mum is cool though." Trent said after a little while, as if this helped matters. "Or seems to be, I've never really seen much of either of them. Blaine definitely keeps his worlds separate."

Kurt shook his head. "He doesn't really have a choice but to let them collide now."

Trent grimaced. "No. And believe me, that terrifies him more than anything to do with his parent's visit can you."

* * *

><p>Kurt walked slowly towards McGonagall's office. His heart thudding so loud he could hear it audibly and became increasingly paranoid that the other students filing past him could hear it too. They all certainly stared at him as he went by, but then that had happened all day so he hoped that there was no change from their previous fascination.<p>

He finally made it outside the sealed door and he stood for a moment, hand raised, ready to knock. Something in him seemed to be pulling his hand backwards, as though willing him not to enter. His mouth suddenly felt very dry and his fingers were shaking. He felt a little sick.

Then suddenly he gave a start as another hand closed around the one that still hung by his side.

He should have noticed that the corridor had turned into a stream of hushed whispers as he looked up to see Blaine's face next to his. He looked positively awful, as if he hadn't slept in a week, yet he ignored the buzz of students around them, perhaps he couldn't even notice their presence at all.

Even so, the sight of him there filled Kurt with an enormous sense of relief as he attempted to smile at the countertenor comfortingly. Kurt felt as though that may be the wrong way round in terms of support and so gave his hand a squeeze.

Blaine took a deep breath, closing his eyes and trying to steady himself.

"Together?" He asked in a hoarse voice.

Kurt nodded once and Blaine gave him one last meaningful look before he knocked twice on the door, the sound of each one sending a shock through the both of them and causing knots to form in their stomachs.

Blaine's hand left Kurt's own at the last second before the door opened and the two of them entered the office.

* * *

><p>"Hello, Anderson, Hummel." McGonagall said hurriedly as she ushered them inside, very aware that the students outside were still gawking.<p>

She closed the door quickly and turned to them, clasping her hands together. "I have to go and teach a class, but I trust that you will both be all right here with Mrs Anderson. Let me know if you need anything." She seemed sort of nervous herself. "Goodbye, boys."

She nodded curtly before quickly exiting the door so that minimal vision of them from outside could be seen.

The two Gryffindor's turned around to face the front of the office then, the revolution feeling like an age as their eyes settled upon the mere one person who stood there.

Blaine's mother was smiling at them, but it did not seem like one of those genuine, welcoming smiles you would expect from a mother who was seeing her son for more than the one brief greeting in many months. However, her smile did not seem austere, merely out of place, as though she was still struggling to come to terms with everything that had happened, which, in fairness, she probably was. Her eyes had dark shadows beneath them and, from what Blaine could tell, her hair had earned a few more streaks of grey within it. She also seemed thinner somehow, though how she could have lost any significant weight in less that 24 hours he had no idea. She just looked frail, as though a puff of smoke could send her careering out of the window.

She stepped forward, however, despite her trepidation and embraced her son tightly, kissing his hair and holding him close. He hugged her back and Kurt looked away, feeling that it was too private a moment of a strange mixture of shock and wonder at the reappearance of her eldest son to intrude upon.

But Blaine pulled back from the hug quite quickly.

"Where's Dad?" He asked, confused.  
>Mrs Anderson pursed her lips and tucked a strand of his hair behind his ear. "He's not here right now, Sweetie, he said he had to go back to the office…"<p>

Blaine took a step backwards, his expression turning dead-pan and he shook his head, speechless.  
>"He said he'll be back this afternoon-" She said hurriedly. "-Don't be upset, love, he isn't-"<p>

"Save it, mum." He said venomously through gritted teeth.  
>"Honey, don't be like that, please."<br>Blaine's hands had balled into fists and he closed his eyes for a moment while he exhaled deeply through his nose.  
>"Sorry," He said finally. "I don't… I know that you haven't done anything. I just…"<br>She put a hand out and placed it gently on his shoulder.  
>"I tried to make him stay, but he said it was important." She whispered.<br>Blaine sighed, "Yeah. It always is."

There was a short silence as she allowed her hand to drop back by her side. Blaine glanced at Kurt for a moment and then ran his fingers through his hair, looking away and pacing slightly.  
>"I knew that telling him yesterday had been a mistake."<br>Kurt perked up at that part. Blaine had told his father about them? About him? And now… what? He had mysteriously disappeared to complete some suddenly crucial business while his son who had been missing for five years had just been recovered and his other son and wife were both desperately struggling to deal with that massive development.  
>The knot in his stomach tightened: what the hell was up with that?<p>

Mrs Anderson shook her head, tears brimming in her eyes slightly as she watched Blaine wrestle with the news.

"He just needs… time."

She looked up then at the other boy standing just behind her son and smiled apologetically at him.  
>"I'm so sorry, you must be Kurt, is that correct?" She asked.<br>Blaine turned his head to look at the countertenor as well, and in doing so his jaw seemed to slacken and his fists unfurl slightly.  
>"Yes," Kurt breathed, holding out a hand. "Nice to meet you."<br>She took his hand warmly with both of her own, stepping forwards to meet him. He was a little taken aback by her friendly demeanour, especially towards him, and with all the drama that was going on within her family at the moment.  
>"How are you holding up? This must be slightly bewildering to you, also?" She asked him with genuine concern.<br>Kurt smiled. "Well, it's never uneventful here at Hogwarts, but yeah, this pretty much takes the biscuit."

She laughed pleasantly, a lot more at ease than she had been when they walked in; clearly she had anticipated Blaine's negative reaction to his father's absence. She turned her head towards him, grinning, then returned to Kurt, surveying his appearance diligently.  
>"Well, aren't you just lovely!"<br>"When he wants to be," Blaine joked, turning back towards them both.  
>"Are you all right, Mrs Anderson?" Kurt asked, feeling that it would be impolite not to do so.<br>"Oh please, call me Faye. I'm… Well, I don't think I've quite adjusted to it all yet. I'm waiting for the shock to subside so that I can find the happiness, but getting there." She beamed and Kurt had no doubt that she would be able to fully access that emotion soon enough.  
>"How is he?" Blaine asked as his mother begged them to both take a seat while she perched on the edge of McGonagall's desk.<br>"Oh, very well: Eating and everything. Well, just soup at the minute, but it's a start." Tears sparked her eyes again and she looked a little embarrassed even though neither Gryffindor felt she had cause to be.

"How… What is he going to do, once he recovers?" Blaine asked.

Kurt noticed that there remained a slightly steely edge to his voice, and he was positive that it had not derived from anything that his charming mother had said. He looked across at the boy beside him and saw that Blaine still held his fists tightly in his lap as he tried to engage in conversation.

"Well, that's what we- I, wanted to talk with you about, sweetie," She told him, looking a little nervous again. "Of course, we'd have loved to have taken him home, let him rest there, get him back to good health and make sure he's okay but he's only really been saying one thing since he's been awake…"

"What's that?" Blaine asked, looking at her curiously.

"That he wants to stay here… With you."

"He… He said that?" Blaine asked, his voice ringing with an edge of excitement before he restrained himself. "I mean… Is that wise?"

She nodded slowly. "I don't see why not… eventually. Of course, he can't start classes right away, and they want to question him. Ministry members are coming tomorrow to run an investigation. We would have done so ourselves, but they say that our interrogation wouldn't be deemed reliable considering… Anyway, once that's over I guess there isn't any real reason to keep him away from here… if that's what he wants. And if you think that you can handle it, darling."

Blaine sat back and considered this for a moment. He looked over at Kurt who wished that he could offer some sort of guidance at that moment, but not having the faintest idea on what should happen now. It wasn't really for him to decide. Instead he simply put his hand over the fist that was still held in Blaine's lap, causing it to relax.  
>Blaine looked back at his mother; "Can I see Nathan first?"<p>

* * *

><p>The three of them stood outside the hospital wing in silence, unable to see the boy on the bed at present, as the window did not illuminate him. Too many students had apparently been trying to catch a glimpse so that they moved his bed away from view. Yet Blaine still stared strangely at it as though he could see.<p>

"Go in, Sweetheart," His mother whispered. "He'll be expecting you."  
>He managed to draw his eyes away to look at her, "Aren't you coming?"<br>She shook her head. "I'll go in later, love, it's something you need to talk to him about without my influence."  
>He hesitated, but then nodded once and stepped forward placing his hand on the door handle.<br>Then he froze and looked up at Kurt, confusion painted on his features. "Coming?"  
>Kurt was a little taken aback. "Do… Do you want me to? I don't want to intrude…"<br>Blaine rolled his eyes, "Why do you think I asked you here, silly?"

Blaine's mother squeezed Kurt's shoulder. "Go on. Trust me, he's just as harmless as his brother."  
>Kurt smiled at her appreciatively, before he followed Blaine inside.<br>Madame Pomfrey looked as though she had been expecting them as she bustled towards the two Gryffindors, leading them down to the other end of the wing where Nathan's bed was obscured.  
>"Wouldn't believe the rubbish this morning," She squabbled as they walked. "Had one boy in with a bruised fingernail, trying to gain entrance. Honestly, probably slammed a door shut on it himself, the idiot. People in this school show no respect for those who are actually in ill health."<br>Kurt glanced sideways at Blaine who gave him a small smile, but made sure that the Hogwart's nurse did not catch him.  
>It faded, however, as they approached the bed. Pomfrey left them immediately without a word, clearly realising that they wanted time alone.<br>Blaine went right over to the boy's bedside, but Kurt remained at the foot of the bed, staring at his sleeping form.  
>He looked far better than Kurt had remembered him from when he had been pulled from the lake. A lot more colour had now flushed his cheeks and he was considerably less damp. His hair was far shorter also; back to the way that Blaine had described it, all though it had been long when he had been recovered.<br>He looked relatively normal, really, clearly there had been no significant damage to him, or none that Madame Pomfrey's mystical know-how couldn't fix up in no time. Even so, he did seem very thin and frail as his chest rose and fell with the rhythm of his breathing and he looked almost childlike as he lay there.  
>Blaine leant forward, touching his brother's shoulder gingerly and shook him very gently.<br>"Nathan?" He whispered.

His eyes fluttered open. They seemed to flick from side to side wildly for a moment before they settled upon the boy who had said his name.  
>He seemed to gravitate back down to conscious reality as he smiled. "Hey, little bro."<br>Kurt couldn't help but watch as Blaine's face lit up at the words from his brother. He wondered how long it would be before the sheer presence of him would cease to bring that elated expression. He hoped it never dwindled.  
>"How are you feeling?" He asked softly.<br>"Hungry…"

Blaine laughed suddenly, dropping his head and shaking it. "Good to see that you haven't changed whatsoever."  
>Nathan rolled his head slightly, closing his eyes again as he yawned and brought his hands to his eyes, rubbing the sleep away. "Well, to me it just feels like a weeks gone by, at most, so it's not all that different."<br>"Still don't remember anything?" Blaine asked incredulously.  
>"Nope. Just the train, a whole lot of black and then your face looming over me, looking like the world had ended." Nathan said while stretching. "Oh, and with a random acceleration through puberty. Good times. But seriously, got any food?"<br>Blaine glanced up to look at Kurt who was staring at Nathan now with the upmost fascination. "Maybe in a minute… I want you to meet someone…"  
>Nathan brought his arms back down again, looking at his brother and then following his line of sight towards the person he had not yet realised was standing straight ahead.<br>Nathan stared at Kurt for a good long while, pushing himself up on his pillows and scrutinising him with curious eyes. Kurt held his breath the whole time, the fear he had felt anticipating Blaine's father's judgements seemed to have transferred now to this meeting as he awaited the verdict.  
>Then Nathan grinned, leaning towards Blaine and asking; "Does he think I'm gonna bite him or something?"<br>Blaine smiled, "Kurt, you can come closer. Kurt, this is Nathan, Nathan, this is Kurt."  
>The countertenor moved around and stood behind Blaine's chair, holding his hand out to his brother. "Nice to meet you."<br>Nathan took it and shook his hand slowly. He stared shamelessly at Kurt; with absolutely no embarrassment the way people normally reacted when meeting someone for the first time. Most people wouldn't want to appear so blatant in their assessment of another, but Nathan quite openly evaluated the boy before him without a regard for how obviously he was doing so. Even after he had dropped his hand.  
>He glanced down at his brother, back to Kurt, and to Blaine again.<br>Then he suddenly roared with an outburst of laughter, and took Blaine quite by surprise by clapping him on the back.  
>"Haha! You went and bloody did it, didn't you?"<br>Both seemed alarmed by this sudden hysteria from the older boy as he carried on laughing.  
>"Did what?" Blaine demanded, looking wildly at Kurt as though wondering if they should contact someone to help him.<br>"Oh please, Blaine," Nathan said exasperatedly, "Don't tell me you still think that you're some master of subtlety? I reckon I realised you were gay before you'd even considered going into the closet, let alone plucking up the courage to step out of it. But you went all out! Jesus, I thought you'd never tell mum and dad!"

Blaine was completely dumb struck, glancing back at Kurt. "How-?"  
>Nathan snorted and gestured at the two of them, "Seriously? One look at you two and it's like you have some sort of neon sign above your heads saying that you're together. Epic. Man, what happened? Did they freak? Bet Dad did, didn't he? Where is he now?" Nathan's eyes bulged. "Fuck, has he met your boyfriend here? Does he know? Ha! Dude, this is some crazy shit - I hope I haven't missed all the good stuff!"<br>"No, well, I mean yes… he knows. I didn't exactly _mean_ to tell him…"

Blaine looked up at Kurt for a second then, his lips pressed together and hands twisting in knots in his lap.  
>"…It just kind of came out. Or, well I told him that I wanted Kurt to come along here today and, well, he must have guessed from me being awkward or something... Or that I said I'd been there over Christmas as well. I mentioned about Finn – Kurt's brother - being on Quidditch but…" Blaine ran an agitated hand through his hair and he suddenly looked twenty years older. "I don't know. Mum knew from the summer."<br>Kurt arched an eyebrow. A new revelation. Was Mrs Anderson that perceptive? She had seemed rather keyed in earlier, despite her current bewildered state.

"Why were you trying to hide it so bad?" Nathan asked, confused.  
>Blaine looked to the ceiling as though he were praying for strength.<p>

"I wasn't, not really. I never denied it, that's for sure; I just wanted him to ask, but honestly when I told him about Christmas I don't think he took any notice. I think he only clocked when I said that yesterday… and then he is mysteriously absent today, so..." Blaine said, a little more darkly than he had probably intended.  
>Nathan rolled his eyes and made a strange noise to convey is thoughts on the ridiculous notion.<br>"Figures. I'm not surprised. Bet he was real pleased." He said, shaking his head and shrugging off-handedly. "He seemed fine this morning."  
>Blaine looked to the floor in silence. "When he was with you, yeah."<br>"Oh, don't tell me you're still on the daddy-loves-you-more-than-me train. Not true, man, he cares about you just as much."  
>Blaine shuffled uncomfortably in his seat, but looked up then. "I didn't come here to talk about all that. Maybe some other time."<p>

Nathan seemed more perturbed by this dismissal, "Has something happened while I've been… gone?"  
>Kurt glanced at Blaine who deliberately avoided eye contact with his brother. His brother, who hadn't been there when he had come out to his father, hadn't witnessed the aftermath of Nathan's disappearance and how his father's attitude towards the younger brother had worsened considerably. In fairness, Kurt had never seen it first hand either, but he had heard enough to know that Nathan probably lived in a thoroughly different family unit than the one that now existed several years later. Kurt had spent a lot of time fretting over Blaine dealing with this massive change, naturally, but Nathan had no idea how his situation had altered, particularly with his family, and the countertenor was sure that his reappearance would be just as difficult a struggle.<br>"It's fine," Blaine said quickly. "But I want to talk to you about here."  
>"Here?" Nathan looked around the hospital wing, "I dunno, kinda dull, hasn't been too long though, and I'm sure they'll let me out soon considering how much better I'm getting."<br>"No, not here, here," Blaine corrected, taking a deep breath. "I mean Hogwarts, and what happens when you _do_ get better, which as you said will probably be fairly soon. Mum says you want to stay."

There was a short pause as Nathan surveyed the younger brother, and Kurt pulled up a chair so that he could sit next to him.  
>"Would that be an issue for you?" Nathan asked slowly, looking disgruntled. "You don't want me to-"<br>"No, no, that's not it," Blaine cut in, tongue tripping over the words. "I just, well, it's a lot to get my head around right now, that's all."  
>Nathan pursed his lips, "Me too, man, but it's gonna be a big deal no matter where I am, and don't get me wrong, seeing mum and dad is great and all-"<p>

Blaine averted his eyes again at this statement, a reaction Nathan did not miss but he failed to comment.  
>"-But I don't want to go home. What will I do there? Sit around and be incessantly molly-coddled? It'll drive me insane. I want to stay here."<br>"Sorry, I don't mean to cut in," Kurt said softly, causing both boys to instantly turn their heads towards him. He thought carefully before he spoke; "Well, if you go home, yes your parents are sure to be obsessive, but… stay at Hogwarts? I mean, you do realise that the entire school is going to harass you non-stop about what happened? You're like a celebrity here already."  
>Blaine's face darkened at the prospect but Nathan grinned. "Really?"<p>

Blaine frowned.  
>"Oh, come on. It wouldn't exactly be a long harassment would it? What happened? I dunno. Where did you go? I dunno. How do you feel? All right." He laughed. "I feel like interest would die down quite quickly."<br>"People might still treat you differently…" Kurt added cautiously.  
>Nathan smiled at him, "Honestly, I don't mind. All of my old friends are long gone, only a few people in your year remember my existence. Other than the teacher's reactions, it'll be like being a first year again, and the teachers aren't going to bother me if I make it clear that I'm fine. Besides, I have one more year of school left, and then I graduate Hogwarts. What harm will it do? I'll have to catch up a bit, but I'm sure I can manage."<br>His air of confidence was remarkable. Kurt could see what Blaine had meant before about his brother; it really would be impossible to hate him. Even if you wanted to, he seemed self-assured but not in an arrogant way, he just had a certain ease about him and even in such a perplexing situation, he made it appear calm and casual.  
>Blaine didn't seem all-together convinced; "Are you sure? I mean like you said, you don't know what's happened to you over the five years; what if there's some unknown affliction that simple spells can't identify? We don't even know how you were taken, or who by, or where you went. It could have been anything, and frankly your lack of memory isn't making it any more comforting."<p>

Nathan put a hand out and clapped it onto Blaine's shoulder. "Look man, I'm okay. Or at least I feel it-" Blaine opened his mouth to protest but Nathan spoke over him "- and if anything odd were to start happening to me don't you think people would notice? Or Dumbledore? Come on, nothing gets past him. If he says I can re-join Hogwarts, I don't see a reason to argue. Besides, if there is anything wrong that Madame Pomfreys missed, I'd put my trust in him to be able to notice it over mum and dad. No offence to them, but everyone knows that the safest place you can be is Hogwarts."

Blaine hesitated, and Kurt could tell that he was trying to calculate further arguments in his mind as to why this was a bad idea.  
>"Blaine," Kurt whispered and the younger brother turned to him immediately. "I think he's right. If there's anyone we can trust, it's Dumbledore, and if it's what he wants to do…" Kurt looked up at Nathan now. "If I'd missed five years of my life, I'd want to be able to make a few decisions regarding it."<br>"I like him Blaine, you can keep him." Nathan grinned.

The vocalist sighed and put his head in his hands. The other two attempted to speak to him but he put a hand up to signal that he was thinking.  
>After a long while he looked up.<br>"I guess it would be kind of cool to have my big brother roaming the halls again."

* * *

><p>A while late the two 6th Year boys departed from Nathan's bed, walking back across the hospital wing as he lay down to rest, the conversation having exhausted him.<br>Kurt slipped his hand into Blaine's and hugged his side.  
>"Are you sure about all of this?" He asked, concerned.<br>Blaine nodded and turned to smile at him. "Yeah. Yes definitely. I wasn't sure at first but, well, I think I'm staring to get a grip on the whole situation… sort of, at least enough so that I know it won't totally freak me out seeing him around everywhere again."  
>"Probably would be a little bizarre," Kurt agreed.<br>Blaine laughed as they neared the door to the hallway, wrapped up in their conversation, Blaine seeming slightly euphoric after the time with his brother. "May make me start the first couple of times, but I'll adjust. It's just so good to have him back. Still just doesn't seem real to me."  
>"Well, I'm sure you'll accept the reality eventually."<br>"Yeah, I guess, it's just-"

But then Blaine froze.

Kurt looked up a second after Blaine had, once he had pushed open the door of the hospital wing.  
>The two boys were faced with a new pair of coal-black eyes, centred upon a face with a square jaw and thick next, a wave of matted black hair sitting slicked back atop his head. The sides of his mouth turned down in a deep frown beneath his cleanly shaven face.<br>His eyes flicked from one Gryffindor's face, to the other, to their hands which hung intertwined by their sides.  
>"Dad," Blaine said with the last breath of air that was kicked out of him.<br>The grim face seemed to become even sterner as he drew the conclusion on the sight he had been presented with.

* * *

><p>Hello readers,<p>

So, I'm just crap at this lately aren't I? but never fear! I'm going to try and shimmy (like Kurt) out a couple more chapters this month before I get tunnelled in with revision. Then I'll have exams and then I'm free! And you'll all have every right to send me very angry messages as I shall have no excuse! Okay?

Kurt solo, Kurt solo, Kurt solo - we've earnt this weeks ep guys - you best enjoy it!

Also, hope you enjoy the chapter, there's plenty of angst, and who doesn't love angst? I love angst...

You know why? Because I'm full of it! Why am I full of it? Because I DON'T LIVE IN AMERICA AND CANNOT GO AND SEE STARKID! And I want to cry... but I'll survive. Maybe.

In other news, if you haven't read it, read Little Numbers the fanfic. Yes, I am now plugging other people's fics on the end of my own - because it's THAT good! So read!

Turrah!


	40. Chapter 39: Weird

Chapter Thirty-Nine: Weird

* * *

><p>"Blaine, may I speak with you a moment?" Mr Anderson's deep voice sent a chill down Kurt's spine and suddenly his mouth felt very dry. He licked his lips, glancing at Blaine who had suddenly frozen.<br>"Blaine?" His father said again, then he straightened the cuffs of his robes meticulously. "I need to speak with you now."  
>"What about?" Blaine asked quietly. Kurt glanced at him; he sounded like a defeated child.<br>"I need to speak to you in private." Mr Anderson announced formally.  
>Blaine hesitated, his chest rising and falling once and then he asked; "Why?"<br>Mr Anderson seemed taken aback by this, as though he was not used to his orders being questioned. Which, to be fair, he probably wasn't. "What do you mean why? Because I need to say something to you."  
>"Then say it." Blaine's voice came out with a hoarse tone attached, but the sharpness was still not disguised.<p>

Mr Anderson's eyes flashed towards Kurt and the countertenor already had the sense that this man would never like him, never even tolerate him, even though no word had even escaped his lips in his presence. Then the fear of confronting this man evaporated. Replaced by a blinding anger as he stood his ground, glaring back.

"Blaine, I don't have time for this. Your mother is very distressed and I need to speak with you alone." His father said, ignoring Kurt's eyes, training his focus on his son, arms clasped behind his back.  
>"Anything you need to say to me, you can say in front of Kurt," Blaine said, forcing his voice steady.<br>His eyes still did not return to the younger Gryffindor. "This is family business, Blaine, I'm sure your friend will understand."  
>"Kurt's not a friend, Dad." Blaine said - voice strained but indignant.<br>Mr Anderson lifted his chin in the air as though he had just smelt something unpleasant. "I'm not interested in your childish whims, Blaine, if you want to dally in your own fancies you can do it when more pressing matters are not upon us. Now leave this boy and come with me. This is about Nathan, you can see your mates afterwards."

There was a short silence and Kurt was at a loss of what to do as he looked between the boy beside him and his father. Blaine's face was wrought with confliction and Kurt could see a thousand things that he'd like to say flashing through his eyes, hiding behind the surface of his mind. His shoulders and neck were tense and stiff as he stood before this tower of a man.

For a moment, Kurt could have sworn that the next words that came from his lips would be a yell but then…

"Okay," Blaine replied in a barely audible whisper.

His father nodded his head once, curtly.  
>Blaine turned to the countertenor. "I have to go."<p>

"I know." Kurt said. "I'll wait for you."  
>"Thank you," Blaine mouthed to him so that his father could not hear the silent exchange.<br>"You're welcome," Kurt said under his breath, quickly squeezing Blaine's hand that was hidden just behind his back, waiting for him.  
>Kurt stepped forward then, and walked down the corridor and past where Mr Anderson stood. When he reached him the stern wizard turned his head towards him a fraction and nodded in acknowledgement.<p>

Kurt smiled very briefly and very falsely before ducking his head and disappearing down the long, dim hallway.

* * *

><p>"Why? Why could I not just stand up for myself? I'm such a god damn coward!"<p>

They were in the Owlery, and all though the length of the tiny tower made it hardly enough to do so, Blaine had found a way of pacing within it, practically tearing at his hair as he did so when he was not overcome with wild hand gestures to convey his agitation and anger with himself.

"Don't say that. You're anything but," Kurt said firmly, sitting on their normal seat and watching him, leant forwards, chin resting on his hands.

He'd been like this for a while now, after relating the brief conversation with his father where both parties had agreed for Nathan to stay. Apparently, little of Kurt and Blaine's relationship had been discussed. This didn't seem to surprise his son.

"I am, Kurt. That was my one chance… my one window to jump through and just tell him – yell at him and say that the way he treats me – and you, and the entire situation is a step too far. I shouldn't have to tolerate this."

"No, you shouldn't." Kurt murmured.

"Gah! He doesn't get it – he'll never get it. And you know why? Because he refuses to open his eyes to this, or anything that's slightly unknown to him. He needs his order, his routine, his systems, and one tiny thing that steps outside his expectations and – bam! He shuts it out. Like how he shut out Nathan's disappearance, tried to put a veil over it and act like everything was normal – but it made things worse."

"Blaine…"

"I mean, how could he not turn up today – to speak to us both. He went back to work? Seriously? And he question's_ my _family priorities."

"Blaine!"

"What?" The vocalist finally turned around to look at Kurt as though seeing him there for the first time, as if hearing his name had made him jump at his boyfriend's presence in the room.

Kurt waved a hand. "Are you still with me?"

Blaine's hand flew to the bridge of his nose, where he pinched it hard. "God, sorry. I'm ranting, aren't I?"

"Only a lot." Kurt answered.

"I can't help it… he just makes me so damn-"

"I know." Kurt said, in what he hoped was a calming tone. "Will you… could you just come and sit down here a moment? I thought that venting might help things, but I think that it's just getting you more wound up."

Blaine grimaced and apologised again before slowly sidling over to sit next to the countertenor, resting his head on his shoulder.

Kurt let him rest there for a while, feeling the muscles in his body relax one by one.

"Kurt?" he said quietly.

"Yes?"

"Can we go on holiday or something? Like a really long one, away from everything?"

"Well that's a very irresponsible way to deal with your problems." Kurt told him.

"Can you stop being practical and humour me for a minute?" Blaine pleaded.

Kurt leant his head against the older Gryffindor's. "Okay, where would you like to go?"

"…Venice."

Kurt raised his eyebrow. "Why Venice?"

"Because… Because I want to ride in a gondola."

Kurt chuckled. "Well, then Venice would be a good place to go for that… just us?"

"Yes. They have a lot of Merpeople there, too, best place to go look for them, so long as you know where to find them. They're not as withdrawn as those around here, in the lake."

"Well, I didn't know that..." Kurt mused. "But they do say it's rather beautiful and they have a statue of Garibaldi."

Blaine shook his head, bewildered. "They have a statue of a biscuit?"  
>Kurt scoffed. "No, silly, the man, Giuseppe Garibaldi. He was an Italian revolutionist who fought for Risorgimento and…never mind."<p>

"You and your muggle history lessons." Blaine sighed. "There's a whole world out there I have next to no idea about. But since when are you interested in Italian militants?"

Kurt pretended to be offended. "I can't be interested in war heroes?"

"Kurt."

Kurt sighed. "Okay maybe it has a little something to do with the fact that he said 'it will be maccheroni, I swear to you, that will unite Italy' spent years away making spaghetti."

"I like him already."

"Thought as much." Kurt said warmly. "I think he also ran off with a fisherman's daughter."

"Scandalous." Blaine laughed. "So, you go and see Gary, while I go in my gondola, deal?"

"Do I not get to share the gondola?"

"I'll have to think about it." Blaine said and Kurt was relieved to hear the teasing tone back in his voice.

"What about Nathan?"

"Well, I'm not sharing it with the both of you – three's a crowd." Blaine murmured.

"Reality, Blaine." Kurt reminded him.

"Eurgh, you were doing so well, Mr Pragmatic."

Kurt wriggled out from Blaine's lean so that he could look at him properly. "I'm sorry, maybe we can go to Venice another night, but right now you do actually have to deal with what's going on right here and now – that's life for you."

Blaine did not answer verbally, merely made a few grumbling noises into his hands.

Kurt pulled them away from his face to look him in the eyes. "You know I'm always here."

Blaine looked at him for a long while and smiled, exhaling a long deep breath. "I know, I know… Ahh, it'll be easier once my parents are gone and I just have to deal with my long-lost sibling, hey?"

"Yeah, just that – no problem." Kurt said. "Piece of cake."

"First spaghetti, now cake – are you just trying to make me hungry or something?"

Kurt rolled his eyes. "I think you're going to be fine."

* * *

><p>Nathan stood and looked out the window of their room, fiddling with his collar, tongue stuck out between his front teeth. He turned around, throwing his hands in the air and looking disgruntled as he pouted at the three boys lounging on the beds behind him.<p>

"Flipping ties! I was rubbish at them before but now I'm thoroughly out of practice." He scowled.  
>Blaine sighed, closed his Potions book and crossed over towards his brother. "Give it here."<p>

It was Nathan's first day officially back as a Hogwarts student and the night before he had been moved into Blaine, Kurt and Finn's room, a bed having appeared there when they went upstairs… as if by magic. He had already been to several meetings with McGonagall and Dumbledore explaining his decision and they had made special exceptions to him joining as well as reassembling his classes so that he could now join the lessons with the least amount of disruption. He had been allowed to join their dormitory under special regulations due to the bizarre circumstances, since he was actually the year above the three boys.

Of course, there was undoubtedly going to be a few issues, with his classmates more than workload most likely, but he seemed fairly confident that he could handle it. Dressing himself, however, appeared to be another obstacle entirely.

"I swear they've changed them."  
>"No, they haven't." Blaine said patiently.<p>

"Can we go to Hogsmeade after lesson's end? Or before – I'm not fussy." Nathan asked, looking out of the window again as Blaine finished the knot in his tie.

"You haven't even had one class yet and you're already thinking of bunking off – you're worse than Wes." Kurt said.

"Wes!" Nathan said loudly. "Ah man! I remember him – your little crazy friend! I always liked him…"  
>"Figures." Blaine said sarkily.<p>

Nathan rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'll go to all of my lessons first, then we go get a Butterbeer – agreed?"

Blaine bit his lip. "Okay… But you have to be careful."

"Seriously, little bro, chill. What am I supposed to be careful of? Burning my tongue on Butterbeer? Or maybe I should beware of being knocked over my Madame Rosmerta's giant bre-"

"Fine, we can go already!" Blaine said, stepping away from Nathan now. "But just focus on lessons for now."

"She still works at The Three Broomsticks, doesn't she?" He asked eagerly.

Kurt frowned. "She owns it, does she not?"

"Does she? Wow, cool!" Nathan said grinning. "Now if I marry her I can own a pub as well, not just be on bar staff. I never liked that uncle of hers, anyway. Too hairy."  
>Kurt wrinkled his nose and then looked over at Finn who had a glazed look in his eye.<p>

"Rachel." Kurt said sharply.

"What?" His brother said suddenly. "Oh right, yeah… I know. Ah crap!"

He suddenly got to his feet, panicked. "I'm meant to go and meet her so that we can discuss Valentine's plans."

He ran a hand through his hair, looking as though it was the last thing that he wanted to do at that moment, but then obviously thought better of disobeying his new high-maintenance girlfriend, bidding them goodbye and heading out of the door.

"Isn't Valentine's a week away?" Nathan asked. "Maybe I should ask out Madame Rosmerta…"

"She'd sooner slap you, I'm sure." Blaine said. "And yes it is. Rachel's one to uh… plan ahead, I guess."

"I'm a celebrity now – she can't possibly refuse me."

"I knew that comment would go to your head…" Blaine muttered, turning to frown at Kurt for his ill choice of words.

The countertenor held his hands up defensively. "Sorry!"  
>"Why is Rachel planning this though – surely she'd be the sort of girl who wants to be surprised on Valentines? Whisked off her feet and all that?" Blaine asked, sitting back down on the bed.<p>

"Yes, but she's the sort of girl who needs to _know _that she's going to be whisked off her feet and to be honest, if you were dating Finn, would you be expecting much?"

Blaine saw his point.

"All right, I'm bored of discussing all these people I don't know – can we go to breakfast now? I want to meet everyone." Nathan cut in.

"Everyone? The Great Hall will be bedlam as soon as you walk in there." Blaine said warily.

His brother seemed to have an entirely different attitude, however, clapping his hands together and grinning. "Good. Let's get this show on the road!"

* * *

><p>Breakfast had proved challenging, but it seemed so more for Blaine than it had been for Nathan. It was sort of amazing how the newly-returned student managed to take it all in his stride. Initially, when he walked in there was just a flood of whispers that spread like firecrackers along the four tables, and even touching the staff. However, the Gryffindor merely strode in confidently and went to take his place next to Finn who he recognised sitting amongst Blaine and Kurt's normal crowd. He settled down next to them all instantly and broke any awkwardness by loudly introducing himself and promising that he would not pass out or puke up in his morning's porridge, but that if he happened to be possessed by some magical voodoo Madame Pomfrey hadn't noticed, he hoped they would forgive him. From then on conversation seemed to go fairly smoothly, until students from other tables began to come over as well, asking him the questions he had expected and giving the replies that he had stated to Kurt and Blaine in the hospital wing. It worked remarkably well, as soon those students returned to their table, passing on the scarce information they were given, the hum of conversation in the hall died down, all though there were still stares and whispers every now and again.<p>

Overall, he dealt with it amazingly, whereas Blaine sat next to him, tense and anxious the entire time. Kurt was sure that it was not his worry for his brother and his ability to cope – he got the feeling that despite the length of time between last hanging out with his brother, Blaine had known exactly what to expect from him in these sorts of situations. No, it was more the fact that he didn't know how to deal with the attention cast on him, the eyes on the back of his head, the questions addressed to him by random students who had never even given him a second glance before. That, coupled with the already bizarre situation and re-emergence of Nathan into his life, seemed to be taking its toll on the Gryffindor Chaser and Kurt was glad when Nathan departed for his lessons so that he and Blaine could go peacefully to their own.

* * *

><p>"Ahh, I could get used to this." Nathan said in a loving voice as he lay back in his seat in The Three Broomsticks, feet placed on the table, Butterbeer resting rather skilfully on his chest as he closed his eyes.<p>

"She'll tell you off if she sees you," Blaine reminded him.

"Nahhh, she won't." He told him. "She'll think it's charming."

"She doesn't look very charmed…" Rachel said, watching as Madame Rosmerta walked by, clicking her tongue in annoyance.

Nathan opened one eye to see. "Didn't say anything though, did she?"

"You're in." Wes chuckled to the left of him, currently laying his own chin flat on the table, pointing his wand at the glass and looking as though he was concentrating very hard.

"What are you doing?" Kurt asked as if he really didn't want to know the answer.

The Ravenclaw did not even need to answer, however, as suddenly the yellow liquid turned a majestic purple.

"Ha!" He cheered in triumph, lifting the cup. "Berrybeer!"

"Does it actually taste like berries?" Mercedes asked sceptically.

Wes thrust the mug towards Rachel, "One can only get a Berry to taste a berry."

Rachel gave the drink a wary look. And Wes moved it towards Finn instead. "Or future Berry?"

His face went pink and Wes grinned.

"I'll try it," Trent declared, reaching towards the mug. He took a sip. "Wow… that's amazing – how did you do that?"  
>Wes twirled his wand around his fingers. "They don't call me a Wes-zard for nothing."<p>

"I'm going to act like you never said that." Kurt said soberly.

"Give it here," Nathan said, holding his hand out for the drink. "…Dude, that's amazing. Keep your voice down though, don't want anyone overhearing our new secret."

"It's only us in here, unless you count your future wife – and you're supposed to share these things in a marriage." Blaine reminded him.

"Hey, we've not made it official yet. Need to make sure I cover my assets, need to be careful of these things when you're a big celeb like me."

"You're not a … Oh, forget it," the younger brother waved a hand, but he was still smiling.

"So what's next? Honeydukes? Dervish and Bangs?" Nathan asked, "All still alive and kicking?"

"Indeed," David confirmed.  
>"Even Zonko's." Blaine snickered.<p>

Nathan held out a threatening finger. "No, Blaine. We absolutely do not joke about that shop."

Everyone couldn't help themselves – they all burst out laughing and soon enough Nathan couldn't hold his reserve either and joined in, playfully pointing to the scar between his eyebrows and sticking out his tongue.

"Laugh it up – my pain and humiliation is your entertainment – I get it. You'll all pay."

A long while later they exited the pub, mostly due to the fact that they felt if they stayed a minute longer Madame Rosmerta would employ ejecter pads on their seats just to make them leave.

Even so, the group was in exceptionally high spirits as they headed back towards the castle.

"Do you think we should go and meet Quinn, Brit and Santana in the library now?" Mercedes asked.

"And work? No. What is this madness you speak of?" Wes replied, when the question had been directed towards Rachel.

The small brunette held a hand up towards him. "Not that you'd know, Wesley, but those girls are not working in there, they're devising secret plans that you lot are not privy to because you're of the wrong gender."

"If I grow breasts can I come?" Trent asked.

Rachel gave him a despicable look and then linked arms with Mercedes. "Good day, gentlemen."

And then they skipped ahead of the rest of them.

"Do you know anything about this?" Kurt asked Finn.

He shrugged. "Sort of. Well, I think it has something to do with Valentines because apparently my 'surprise' has to be in the morning or night as she 'has the dinner period covered'."

"That's some heavy usage of quotation marks – sounds serious." Nathan remarked.

"Yeah…" Finn said, decidedly less cheerful.

Kurt patted his back. "You'll think of something."

"Oh, don't worry, she gave me a list." He reached inside his pocket and dug out a folded up scroll of parchment.

The boys all stopped and uncurled it. It took them a while.

"Whoa… she really took her time over this." David said.

"What's a Pomeranian? Some kind of Pygmy Puff?" Blaine asked.

"No, it's a dog… or at least I think it is. Presenting her with a basket of Pygmy Puffs is number 32."

"Of course it is. Why on earth would she want you to dress in a top hat and a tail?" Nathan asked.

"Tails – it's a kind of fancy suit. You have to read on, see, says it's so they can recreate the scene from Funny Face where-"

"Whas goin' on 'ere boys?"

The group were so busy laughing at Finn's sufferings that they hadn't even noticed the shadow that Hagrid cast over them all approaching. They all suddenly looked up, rather startled and Finn snatched the parchment from Kurt's hands and stuffed it back inside his robes.  
>"Nothing," They chorused.<p>

Hagrid frowned, but seemed to gloss over the situation. "If ye say so."

He looked down towards the newest face of the group. "Hey Nathan – everythin' all righ' wit ye?"

"Yes, thanks, Hagrid – long time no see." He answered pleasantly.

"Well, Hagrid saw you when you were unconscious, didn't you?" Blaine said, looking up at the half-giant.

"…Yeah." He replied hesitantly.

"You all right Hagrid?" Kurt asked, frowning. "Where have you come from."  
>"Oh, well, I wus jus' having a drink at the Hog's Head." He grunted.<p>

"Just the one drink?" Wes asked, suppressing a grin as he winked towards the others.

"Yeah, tha's righ'." Hagrid replied, still fairly distant. "Come t' think of it der wus somethin' I was meant to tell ye…"

"Think long and hard." Wes guided him. "Search them brains."

Hagrid raised a hand triumphantly. "Oh yeah, Professor Dumbledore wanted me t' take Nathan here up t' his office. Said der wus a few more things he needed t' run by him. If tha's all righ' wit ye of course?"

"Sure," Nathan said, looking a little perplexed about what Dumbledore could need from him so soon after his return. "Have I done anything wrong?"

"No, no. Just checkin' on ye I reckon." Hagrid said slowly.

"…All right. Lead the way." Nathan said, shrugging as he looked towards the others and watching carefully as Hagrid moved away from them all, allowing the older Anderson brother to follow behind him.

Wes shook his head. "You'd think being a giant would let him handle his drink a little better – wouldn't you."

"Well, he probably drinks giant size portions." David said.

"He didn't really seem drunk… more dazed than anything." Kurt said, watching as the giant and the Gryffindor sloped off into the distance.

"Oh well, he'll be fine." Trent said off-handedly. "Shall we get back? I'm bloody freezing."

"Yeah, so long as we have some good reading material on the way back…" Blaine said suggestively.

Wes was way ahead of him, swooping behind Finn and grabbing the parchment back from his inner pocket.

"Number 45..."

* * *

><p>It was late in the evening when Nathan returned to the dormitory, Finn was already fast asleep as he walked in slowly, pushing the door shut behind him with great care. Blaine and Kurt were still sitting up on their beds, talking crossed legged, facing one another.<p>

They looked up as he entered.

"Hey, you okay?" Blaine asked instantly.

"Yeah," Nathan said, though he appeared distant.

"…Want to talk about it?" His brother asked, concerned. "You weren't in trouble or anything, were you?"

"No, no." He said. "Can I talk to you?"

The question seemed very direct and Blaine shot Kurt a puzzled look. "Sure?"

"Outside."

Blaine looked to Kurt again, a little guiltily.

Kurt smiled. "Go. I don't mind."

Blaine swung his legs around and off of the side of the bed to stand up as he followed his brother back out of the room. Nathan had exited almost immediately without another word.

"What's up?" Blaine asked, after pulling the door shut behind him.

"Have you got plans for Valentines day?"

"I – what?... Why?" Blaine looked at his brother incredulously, completely taken aback by the subject matter he had been least expecting.

"Have you?"

"What? No, I… is this what Dumbledore wanted to see you about or something?" Blaine stammered.

"Don't be stupid, no. I'm just asking." Nathan whispered.

"What did he want?" Blaine asked.

His brother waved a dismissive hand. "Oh nothing, just asking how my lessons went. So what are you going to do?"  
>"About what?"<br>"Valentines – keep up."

"Err… I don't know – why does it matter?"

Nathan was staring at Blaine very intently. "Because I think you should. At night or something – when nobody else is around."

"I don't mean to be rude or anything… but why on earth do you care so much?" Blaine asked, scrutinising him and trying to work out the motivation behind this interrogation.

"I just thought it would be nice, given everything you two have been through lately, if you had a nice evening together without the rest of our craziness." Nathan said automatically.

"Right… Did you run into Rachel down there or…?"

"Quit avoiding the subject." Nathan snapped suddenly.

"Err, okay. Well, if you're so adamant to know, I did have one idea and yeah, probably will need to be in the evening or something… but I still don't see why it matters to you."

"Great. Perfect. And because I care." He said, patting Blaine on the shoulder then moving past him to go back towards the door.

"Where are you going now?" Blaine demanded.

"To sleep." Nathan answered, as though it were obvious.

"Right… okay."

The two boys entered the room again, finding Kurt in the same position as when they had left, waiting expectantly.

Nathan crossed over to his bed, pulling out his pyjamas and going off to change.

"Everything all right?" Kurt said in hushed tones as Blaine walked back over to his own bed.  
>"Yeah," Blaine said uncertainly, shaking his head.<br>"What?" Kurt asked.

"Nothing…" Blaine smiled. "I think I just forgot how weird he is sometimes."  
>Kurt raised an eyebrow and Blaine laughed. "It's fine. He's fine."<br>"If you say so…" Kurt said as Nathan re-entered the room, climbed into bed and didn't say another word.


	41. Chapter 40: It's Flyentine

Chapter Forty:

* * *

><p><span>Songs:<span>

Teddy Geiger: For You I Will

Plain White T's: You and Me

Mercedes pushed the door to the empty Charms classroom open very tentatively and stepped inside. She looked around, at first not really knowing what it was she was doing there.

"Hello?" She said in a quiet voice, walking into the vacant room and turning her head to try and see if someone was there. "Hello? Anyone there? Okay, this is really beginning to freak me out now…"

Just then the door behind her clicked shut and she spun around, alarmed.

David held his hands up and grinned as Mercedes' hand flew to her heart.

"Relax, I won't hurt you," He winked.

"What the hell do you think you're doing sneaking up on me like that?" She thundered, folding her arms, thoroughly unamused.

"So, I see you got my note," He said, not answering the question and stepping towards her.

It was true that she had found a note wrapped around the stem of her quill this morning directing her to this room. "I knew I shouldn't have let curiosity get the better of me…" She mumbled.

"Hey, come on," David said, voice serious now. "It's the only way I could get you alone, seeing as you're always so desperate to avoid me these days."

"I'm not!" Mercedes retorted, but her voice was a little higher than what could be considered a trustworthy tone.

"Mhm, of course." David said, sighing. "Look, I don't want to push you into anything. Just… I wanted to play you a little something."  
>It was only then that Mercedes notice the guitar resting against the wall to her left.<p>

She stared at it for a moment. "What kind of song…?" She asked, warily.

David rolled his eyes. "Guess."  
>"But Valentine's Day is tomorrow..."<br>"Thanks for the reminder. You're like my own personal calendar." He joked, then took her hand. She did not pull it back, which was a start. "It doesn't matter what day it is… I had planned to do this tomorrow, but I don't know… I didn't want you to think that I was only doing it because the day dictated it. I want you to know that this is all me. So will you just shut up and listen for once?"  
>"You sure know how to charm a girl…" Mercedes said, averting her gaze.<br>David grinned. "Is that a yes?"

"One song," She said sternly. "Then I really do have to get to class."

David looked as though he were a child who had just been granted permission to open his Christmas presents early as he took her over to a seat that was already laid out, jumped across to where the guitar was sat and went towards an empty desk, sitting upon it and resting the instrument on his knee.

He looked up at her, complete sincerity in his eyes. "Thank you."  
>Mercedes did not respond, but she smiled and took a deep breath.<p>

Wondering the streets, in a world underneath it all  
>Nothing seems to be, nothing tastes as sweet<br>As what I can't have  
>Like you and the way that you're twisting your hair<br>round your finger  
>Tonight I'm not afraid to tell you<br>What I feel about you.

Mercedes swallowed as she watched. Watched him delicately strum the strings of the guitar, his voice melting through the lyrics as he never took his eyes off of her. At first she felt hot, like she didn't know where to look or what to do with her hands, but the more she listened, the more she looked, the more a new calmness washed over her and she sank into the performance of the Ravenclaw boy before her.

I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have  
>and cannon ball into the water<br>I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have  
>For you I will<br>For you I will

Forgive me if I stutter  
>From all of the clutter in my head<br>Cuz I could fall asleep in those eyes

He looked into her own eyes then and watched delightedly as she blushed from the intention of the words. He smiled and then returned his attention to the song.

Like a water bed  
>Do I seem familiar, i've crossed you in hallways<br>a thousand times, no more camouflage  
>I want to be exposed, and not be afraid to fall.<p>

I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have  
>And cannon ball into the water<br>I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have  
>For you I will<br>You always want what you can't have  
>But I've got to try<br>I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have  
>For you I will<br>For you I will  
>For you I will<br>For you

If I could dim the lights in the mall  
>And create a mood I would<br>Shout out your name so it echos in every room  
>I would<p>

She could see the vulnerability there. Even though the cocky 7th year tried so hard to conceal it, particularly around his friends, she saw it the same as she had in those rare moments where they'd been alone together. He was scared; he really did need to find that confidence. Was it really all down to her? She was running out of other reasons for it. She was beginning to understand.

That's what I'd do, That's what I'd do to get through to you

I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have  
>And cannon ball into the water<br>I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have  
>For you I will<br>You always want what you can't have  
>But I've got to try<br>I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have  
>For you I will<br>For you I will  
>For you I will<br>For you I will

David put down the guitar very slowly, not daring to look up and gage her reaction from the last part of the song. He licked his lips and then raised his head to meet her eyes.

Mercedes had not moved, merely continued to stare at him.

"So…" He said in a dry voice, swallowing to prevent it from cracking. "What did you think?"

Mercedes got to her feet and walked towards him, making the Ravenclaw positively fearful now, tensing up, unprepared for her reaction.

Mercedes suppressed a smile as she drew closer to him, put a hand lightly on his shoulder, and then kissed him swiftly on the lips.

"Thank you," She whispered.

He could not respond.  
>"Make sure you make it to dinner tomorrow." She said finally, dropping her hand back to her side and turning to walk away and back out of the room, leaving David speechless in her wake.<p>

* * *

><p>Kurt walked along the hallway slowly on his way to dinner, arms tightly folded across his chest while his footsteps shuffled reluctantly. Something was bothering him but he couldn't exactly put his finger on why he was in this strange mood. He reached his mind back to search through the day and pinpoint the exact moment he had started slipping into this lull.<p>

He was almost certain that it had been this morning, the last time he'd spoken to Nathan before he had gone to his final-year classes. He just seemed…off. Kind of distant and distracted. He didn't joke as much as he had done previously, not as confident, and the charm in his eyes had disappeared. It didn't make any sense – what had changed from the day before? But then again that night he had been quiet also, beckoning Blaine away and then going to bed without a word. He had not known the older Anderson long but he had been subjected to enough to get an instinct on his personality and for some reason it had suddenly dwindled.

Kurt shook his head. He was being silly; Nathan had been through so much and surely it was to be expected that he was going to be breaking through some mental barriers, in fact his current dealing with the situation had been somewhat astounding up till now. No one would have blamed him for being overwhelmed or broken or lost. It was only natural, but it was weird that he had switched so quickly. Maybe Dumbledore had revealed something important when Nathan had visited him – had it really affected the Gryffindor that badly?

Kurt was certain that he had not told Blaine when they had disappeared from the dormitory for a while, because he definitely knew the younger brother well enough to be able to know if something was up – there was no way that Blaine could ever hide something so great from him.

Kurt sighed, the niggling feeling at the back of his mind not disappearing, all though the forefront of this thoughts told him to give it a rest, lock it away and just let it play out. Nathan was bound to have funny spells, he was probably just overreacting and today was meant to be a celebration, not a time to be miserable.

But no matter how many times he tried to tell himself this, and that he was being ridiculous, his gut would not desist and relentlessly tugged at his core, trying to tell him something important that he could not get an accurate read on.

Just then a pair of hands jumped out from nowhere and clasped both of his shoulders as the Gryffindor Chaser bounded into view.

"Do you know what day it is?" Blaine asked exuberantly as he swung to Kurt's side, leaving one arm round the countertenor.

"Everyone knows what day it is," Kurt answered, his previous worries dropping at the sight of the wide grin that spread across Blaine's face.

"Well, yes. It's Valentine's Day - same old, same old, but it holds far greater importance than that." He told him happily, practically skipping and causing Kurt's slow paces to quicken.

"And why's that?"

"Because exactly a year ago today you - " he pressed his index finger to Kurt's nose, to which the younger Gryffindor wrinkled it and pulled away playfully. "- Saw me for the first time and fell hopelessly in love with me and my beautiful voice."

"I don't think that's exactly how the story goes…" Kurt said, trying to hide his smirk.

"Well, that's how I remember it, so I'm sticking with it," Blaine beamed.  
>"As I recall <em>you <em>were the one who singled me out in the crowd as you sang, so I think it's actually the other way around."

"Regardless, Kurt, you better turn that frown upside down because we've got one hell of a day ahead of us."

"Blaine, it's 6 o'clock. The days practically ended and we've spent most of the day together in class anyway."

Blaine laughed. "The light may shine in the day, but nights when we come out to play."

"…You're insane."

"But lovable."

"And ridiculous."

"And yet you can't resist me." Blaine sang as he skipped forward a little and held out his hand as they reached the doors to the great hall. "Shall we?"

Kurt shook his head but he could not fight the smile off of his face any longer. "It's just dinner, Blaine."

He winked. "For now."

* * *

><p>Dinner was over but the boys were looking around them now, thoroughly confused because the girls, who had sat and eaten and laughed with them throughout the meal, had suddenly disappeared in the last few minutes and nobody had any idea where they had gone.<p>

"Err, did any of you actually see them leave?" Trent asked, leaning over to the Gryffindor table and then glancing at the empty place beside him where Brittany had been only moments ago.

"No… Looks like Quinn and Santana went AWOL as well." Finn nodded towards the Ravenclaw and Slytherin table where two more empty spots were clearly visible. Wes turned around and shrugged.

Kurt was slightly preoccupied however, staring at Nathan who sat across from him, looking up towards the ceiling as though deep in thought. He had been fine all the way through dinner. Just fine. He had sat, eaten, talked, but not too much. Conversation had been rattling all the way through, however, so perhaps he was just happy being a bystander to other's discussions, he had seemed to have listened intently, but Kurt was still slightly uneasy. What if there was something wrong with him? What if he truly was struggling with everything and everyone else didn't see it? Surely Blaine did… but maybe his brother was just too hopeful for him to be okay that he didn't want to register it, especially on a day when he was so determined to be positive.

Just then the lights in the Great Hall seemed to dim, the students looked up and saw that the sunset had been accelerated by the ceiling above and now a reddish hue spread across the room.

A clapping rhythm suddenly began at the front of the Hall and everybody looked up to the high table where, standing on top of the surface, were the five Hogwarts girls, arms raised above their heads, dancing to the beat they were creating.

Brittany and Santana, at either end of the table, cartwheeled off of the sides and swept around to the front to lift Rachel down by the arms and onto the floor before them all.

You and me, we like the same kind of music  
>That's why we, make a good you and me<br>We got style, baby we know how to use it  
>That's why we, make a good you and me<p>

Mercedes and Quinn were helped down now as well and the five of them strutted to the front of the stage as music began to resound around the room, a chorus breaking out from the voices of all the girls who sat astride the house tables like a beautiful choir.

You know what I'm going to say before my mouth even makes a sound  
>And that's why we make a good you and me<p>

Mercedes stepped forward now, gliding in between the table before she reached David, holding out her hand to him.

You and me, we couldn't stand being normal  
>That's why we, make a good you and me<p>

Rachel was on the other side now, giving Finn her hand and leading him up to the stage along with Mercedes and David as they sang in unison. Wes punched him on the arm as he went by and gave him an elated thumbs-up.

We both laugh, at the most random situations  
>That's the key, baby don't you agree?<p>

Quinn stepped forward then, reaching one hand out to Wes, the other to Trent and beckoning them to join her. The two boys did not need telling twice, Wes actually throwing his fork across the table and standing up on the bench as though he were accepting some kind of knighthood.

You know what I'm going to say before my mouth even makes a sound  
>And that's why we make a good you and me<br>I know from the sound of your breathing exactly what you are feeling  
>This is why we make a good you and me<br>Make a good you and me  
>Make a good you and me<br>You and me

Brittany made Kurt jump as she snuck up behind him and sang in his ear:

Ah ah ah ah  
>You and me, all we need is each other<p>

Brittany took Kurt's hand as pulled just as Santana walked along the surface of the Gryffindor table, holding her hands out to the two brothers. Nathan waved his hand but smiled, whereas Blaine took her hand gladly, pulled up onto the table with her and joining in the song.

That's why we, make a good you and me

The two girls headed back up to the stage with the others, putting Kurt and Blaine's hands together as they joined their own fingers and continued to sing. Nathan sat and clapped along to the beat still sitting on the bench.

You know what I'm going to say before my mouth even makes a sound  
>And that's why we make a good you and me<br>I know from the sound of your breathing exactly what you are feeling  
>This is why we make a good you and me<br>Make a good you and me  
>Make a good you and me<br>You and me

* * *

><p>"Do you ever think that the rest of the school gets tired of us?" Kurt laughed as he and Blaine walked out into the school grounds that evening once dinner had ended.<p>

"Nah, they love it. We're too amazing for them not to." Blaine assured him.

"You've become awfully cocky today," Kurt remarked as their hands swung between them.

"No, I've always been this way, you've just been too blind to see it," He grinned. "I'm just happy, Kurt, can you accept that?"

The countertenor smiled. "Of course I can." Then he paused. "Well, maybe, if you tell me where it is you're taking me."

"Do you not understand the definition of a 'surprise'?" Blaine asked him teasingly.

"If I say no will you tell me what it is?"

"No."

Kurt sighed but Blaine merely chuckled. "I hope Nathan's all right tonight. I think Finn's gone with Rachel somewhere and he'll be in the room alone. I hope he doesn't get too lonely. It'll be the first time he has been since he's been back."

He seemed to be speaking aloud to himself more than asking Kurt for an opinion, and the younger wizard merely bit his lip, not wanting to discuss the brother who had been troubling his mind lately.

Blaine shrugged, "He can take care of himself. He's been incredible these last couple weeks, don't you think?"

"Amazing." Kurt agreed, deciding that saying anything more on the matter could be dangerous, and he was resolute on not destroying any of the plans Blaine had clearly made for them.

"Are we close?" He asked, after some time. "We've passed Hagrid's hut now…"

"Nearly," Blaine said mischievously. "Patience – learn to use some of it."  
>"I've exhausted my supply of it today trying to convince Wes not to steal Trelawney's glasses after dinner."<p>

"Why was he trying to do that?" Blaine asked.

"Beats me. He just said he had an urge to do it. Promised he'd give it back, but somehow I doubt he would've."

Blaine shook his head. "Someone really needs to do a case study on that boy…"

"I think that'd be too great a trial for anyone to endure."

They carried on down the grounds until they had finally reached the water's edge, not too far from where only a few mere weeks ago, Blaine had pulled his brother from the lake.

"We've reached a dead end, it would seem," Kurt said, turning to face the boy beside him expectantly. "Will you reveal all yet?"

"Maybe, if you're good." He said in a mock-stern voice.

"You know you haven't even given me a present yet." Kurt reminded him.

Blaine took both of the countertenor's hands. "That's because it had to presented at the proper moment."

"Is this the proper moment?" Kurt asked hopefully.

"Yes." Blaine said, leaning towards the Gryffindor boy slowly. Kurt leant in as well, but at the last moment Blaine had dropped his hands, pulling back and reaching into his robes to get his wand. Before Kurt knew what he was doing the vocalist held it in the air.  
>"<em>Accio broom!<em>" He exclaimed.

Kurt turned as he heard the whooshing sound rocketing through the air as a broomstick came into view in the distance.

He turned back to the boy before him. "You want to go flying now?"

"No…" Blaine said, watching as the broom flew down to settle beside them. He held his arms out; "Kurt, I give you your present."  
>Kurt blinked at him, looking from the hovering broom, to him and then back again.<p>

"Err… I think you may have me confused with your other boyfriend…" He looked positively fearful just at the presence of it.

"Come on," Blaine crooned, taking his hand again. "Look, when you told me that story about your first flying lesson I thought it was really sad because I don't think that you're the sort of person who is or should be scared of anything. It was ages ago, Kurt, and it's time to face your fears, especially when you're scared of something that I find… unbelievable. It's flying – have you never dreamed of being able to fly?"

"Yes… but when I do I have big multi-coloured wings to lift me into the air, not a broken piece of branch."

"What, like a peacock?"  
>"No, don't be ridiculous… Peacocks can't fly."<p>

"Kurt, seriously, it's the best thing ever." Blaine said, squeezing his hand insistently.

"Blaine Anderson, there is no way in hell that you are going to get me to go on that broom by myself." Kurt said as if that settled the matter.

Blaine took a confident step forward, an unnerving look in his eye as the corner of his mouth pulled up in a gleeful smile. Kurt had never been so frightened of his boyfriend in all the time he had known him; he almost wanted to back away.

"Who said you were just going by yourself?" He asked delightedly, still having hold of Kurt's hand, he took the other and suddenly turned, wrapping them both around his waist.

"Wait! Blaine! No, I don't-"  
>But it was too late, the Chaser jumped forward, still with his hold on Kurt and kicked off from the ground with the broom held firmly in his other hand. Immediately, Kurt's arms fastened around Blaine's middle, clinging on for dear life as the pair shot into the air and left Blaine able to grasp the front of the broom with both hands. He had expected that reaction from Kurt, meaning that he would be securely attached to him, however he had not quite prepared himself for the screaming…<p>

"Argh! Blaine! For the love of god – LET ME DOWN!" Kurt buried his head between Blaine's shoulder blades and made noises like an injured kitten as they flew through the air.

"Kurt! Just try and relax, okay?"

"How can I relax?" Kurt yelped, voice higher than the older Gryffindor had ever heard it, which was saying something. Kurt's arms were practically choking Blaine by this point, his fingernails gripping into his stomach.  
>Blaine came to a stop mid-air and turned his head towards the boy behind him.<p>

"Kurt, look at me." The countertenor did not. "Come on, Kurt, just look up."  
>Very slowly, Kurt peeled open his eyes and drew them level with Blaine's.<br>He smiled and whispered very softly, "Hi… It's just you and me here, okay? And you know I'd never let anything happen to you – right?"

Kurt nodded timidly.

"So, trust me."

"I do trust you. I just don't trust the broom." Kurt said, voice trembling.

"The broom is just an extension of me at this point. I control it so it's not going to do anything that I don't want it to." Blaine assured him calmly.  
>"I hate you so much right now."<p>

Blaine laughed loudly at that. "No you don't!" And without second's warning he shot off again, soaring through the air like a bird.

Kurt's eyes were open now as he looked down at the landscape rushing beneath them.

His heartbeat was hammering, but at least he could look at it now, look at the gentle lapping of the lake, the flurried passing of the tree, the dim light of Hagrid's hut below, the firelight within flickering.  
>"Beautiful, isn't it?"<p>

The last thing Kurt wanted to do right now was give Blaine the satisfaction of being right, but damn, he had to admit it to himself that he was.

Hogwarts was… more stunning than he had ever though possible as they approached the great castle, veering through the vast turrets and over the quaint courtyards far below where Kurt could even see tiny dotted couples, just like themselves, making their own Valentine's memories. But none quite like their own being made right now as they soared through the midnight skies.

Kurt still clung to Blaine, making sure that there was absolutely no possible way of him falling from this great height, but he did not feel quite so petrified by his position in the air anymore. He saw new shapes and angles of the grounds that he had never before experienced, shrouded in the growing darkness, but still managing to sparkle, the shadows dancing as they moved at the most perfect speed.

Blaine ducked and dived at all the right moments, at one point dipping down low so that their feet skimmed the surface of the lake, causing a multitude of ripples to fan out beside them. Kurt turned his head and watched as they faded back to their previous tranquillity, and then went back to rest his cheek against Blaine's back, feeling oddly peaceful. That was a word that he never thought he'd use describing a broomstick ride, but the breath-taking setting coupled with the soft thuds of Blaine's heartbeat that he could hear against his ribcage was enough to make it unbelievably true.

All the previous worries that had absorbed his mind earlier that day seemed to evaporate from his every thought, so much so that if someone had asked him why he had been in a bad mood or what his concerns were at that moment, he would not have been able to fathom an answer. He would have just stared back at them blankly, unwilling to comprehend any present trouble that could possibly consume him when it was so easy to be this content.  
>"Blaine?" Kurt said softly as they gradually climbed back up to the clouds in the sky.<p>

"Yes?" The Chaser replied.

"Thank you." He would let the boy in his arms win this one, just this once. Flying really was one of the best things in the entire world, only beaten perhaps, by actually sitting on those clouds that lay just above their heads.

Blaine slowed their speed considerably, still keeping a firm grip on the broom with one hand, but turning in his place to face Kurt directly and finding his waiting lips.

* * *

><p>The two boys made their way back into the castle very late that night. It was now well past curfew since they had spent a few hours just lying on the ground together and looking at the stars after their broom ride. Kurt had insisted that he needed to lie down in order to settle his stomach, but after ten minutes or so they merely stayed there being blissfully happy and completely forgetting the time going by.<p>

"So did you have a fun first-time-seeing-and-instantly-falling-for-each-other day?" Kurt asked.

"I did very much, thank you." He answered smugly. "And I know you did, even if you'll still insist to hate me for it forever."

"I do."  
>"I don't believe you. And you'd ride a broom again some day – admit it!" Blaine sniggered.<p>

Kurt did not answer.

"Ha! That means yes! Seriously though, this broom is yours. I did actually buy it for you – it's not mine." Blaine said, holding the broomstick in the hand that was not currently intertwined with Kurt's.

"I'll think about it," Kurt teased, not letting anything go at this point.

"You're so stubborn… How late is it?" Blaine asked.

"Late enough to whisper!" Kurt hissed under his breath as the two boys glanced around the dark corridor, Kurt's wand lifted and ignited at the tip since Blaine was carrying the broom.

Just then they rounded the corner to Gryffindor Common Room, Kurt just ahead. As soon as he had turned the corner, however, he saw something that made him jump and pull Blaine roughly back behind the wall.  
>"What?" Blaine asked. "Is someone there?"<p>

Kurt peered round again.

"Kurt!" Blaine hissed, pulling on his hand. "Who is it? McGonagall?" He guessed fearfully.

"…No…" Kurt said slowly. "No, it's nobody. Just someone going back in there as well."

Blaine gave a muffled laugh under his breath. "Couple of people sneaking back in late like us, ey?"  
>"Yeah." Kurt said distantly.<br>"Well, are they gone?"

Kurt nodded, stepping out of behind the wall as Blaine happily walked forward to announce the password.  
>Kurt stood just behind him, the brightness that had lit up within him from their evening having been suddenly extinguished. Kurt did not want to tell Blaine that it had not been two young lovebirds that he had just seen trying to slip back into the corridor unnoticed so late at night. It was Nathan.<p>

* * *

><p>I have one more exam to gooooooo! Sorry again for the delays, but after this week I shall be free as a bird and hopefully possess better time-keeping skills. Seeing as Glee is now over (*sniff*) I figured I should give you a little something to fulfil this week. Hey if you want to leave what you thought of this season, send me a message or what have you, then feel free! Always up for a good chat. Personally, though I know many people are bummed about it, I'm not too heartbroken about Kurt not getting in (all though realistically, who would turn him down?) because I figure it means they have bigger plans for next season and I am very intrigued to find out what that'll be. Of course, I won't raise my hopes too high... it is still RIB. But hey, maybe with Finchel on a 'break' Klaine kisses will outnumber them for once? hahahaha, who am I kidding? It's still Glee.<p> 


End file.
